Wild run continues for Brascia and Fought

Todd Fought is feeling good, Maggie Brascia is just “so excited” and Mary Brascia is living it up.

And Mary isn’t even playing. 

Yeah, that’s what happens when you enter the draw as the No. 22 seed and make it all the way to Semifinal Saturday.

“I can’t wait,” said Todd Fought, who, along with his partner Maggie Brascia, continued their improbable run through and knocked off another higher-seeded team at the PPA Tour’s North Carolina Cup.

“I’m feeling like we can’t lose,” he said.

Truly, who can blame him? At this point, why not? Fought and Brascia are the only team out of four who had to play a match on Tuesday. They are also the only team who has won matches the past three days against teams that were seeded higher.

Wednesday, the two beat Parris Todd and Julian Arnold, the No 14 seed. Thursday they beat an absolute heavyweight in Anna Bright and James Ignatowich, the No. 2 seed, and then they followed it up, proving the Sweet 16 win wasn’t a fluke by beating the No. 9 seeded team of Hayden Patriquin and Lea Jansen, 11-8, 4-11, 11-7.

“I didn’t have my best stuff and Maggie brought her best stuff. It was amazing,” Fought said.

Meanwhile, it is kind of amazing the two are still playing. They’ll take on 13th-seeded Dekel Bar and Tina Pisnik who also pulled an improbable upset, beating Catherine Parenteau and Jack Sock Friday, 11-1, 10-12, 12-10.

“You wanted a show, we gave you a show,” Pisnik said.

Well, it’s set to be a show for sure on Saturday. Fought and Brascia have never played for a mixed doubles medal, and now they are guaranteed a match on Sunday. Pisnik doesn’t have a gold and Bar hasn’t medaled in mixed doubles since 2021.

The other side of the bracket has top-seeded Anna Leigh Waters and Ben Johns going up against Vivienne David and Thomas Wilson. Waters and Johns have won three golds in 2024. David and Wilson took gold in Minnesota. 

“We’re just so excited. This is the farthest we’ve ever gone,” Brascia said. “We’re playing on Sunday, no matter what. We’re having fun and we keep winning and it’s just so fun.”

“It’s my first semifinal,” Fought said. “I can’t wait.”

And back to Mary, Maggie’s sister, who was taking it all in on Friday.

“I am living through them,” she said. “I’m so proud of them. They deserve it. Watch out for them. They are coming for the gold.”