Murrysville teen Julia Stein captures international racquetball title

By: HSSN Staff
Saturday, December 8, 2018 | 1:18 AM

Adam Stein was his daughter Julia’s first coach. Her brother Thomas Carter, plays professionally. And though she grew up emulating them, she has surpassed each in at least one way.

The junior at Serra Catholic recently won the International World Junior Racquetball Championship’s girls 14 doubles title, making her the first world champion in the family.

“I got her brothers playing when she was 4 or 5 years old, and she would sit in the back of the court with her racket over her face just protecting herself,” Adam Stein said.

“I think she got hooked on it at that point. It’s been almost 10 years now, so this is pretty amazing.”

These days, Julia, a Murrysville resident, is a fearless enforcer on the court.

Her aggressive approach complements her partner, Heather Mahoney, of Penngrove, Calif., who takes a more conservative approach to the game.

“Our coach (Team USA’s Charlie Pratt) said he loves watching us play, because we fit like a puzzle piece,” Julia said. “We’re definitely polar opposites, but we make it work. We’re best friends, and we know how to play together.”

They formed a team in 2013 and, after coming up short in several national and international tournaments, combined to beat Mexico’s team in a tiebreaker.

Julia and Heather won the first game 15-10 and lost the second 15-1.

“I think we came fired up for the first game and played how we knew we could, but the second game we were in a funk,” Julia said. “… My coach, Charlie Pratt, just said he saw fire in us our first game and wasn’t seeing it anymore. He told us to play like we want it. It was scary, but I knew we could beat them if we were just calm and hit better shots.”

Julia and Heather rallied to a decisive 11-1 victory in the match’s tiebreaker to win the world championship in their division.

“The moment it happened I really just thought, ‘Wow’ and I couldn’t believe it,” Julia said. “Now, I think about it like you’re only as good as your last loss. You’ve got to go back and play, and hopefully I win next year, too.”

Julia has played on the international stage for about six years, and opponents from countries like Mexico, Costa Rica and Bolivia used to dominate her.

Her progression has led to bronze medals in recent years.

“Getting beat pretty badly is hard, because there’s nothing you can do about it,” Julia said. “When you start to make it really far and lose, it’s a different kind of sadness. Then, you think about what you maybe could have done with a couple better shots. I’ve wanted this for a long time, so when we finally won, everything it just felt really good.”

Julia and Heather also have long-term goals like playing on the pro tour.

“That’s the plan, to play together forever,” Julia said. “I don’t know if those plans will change, but I hope not. She’s an amazing partner. It’d be pretty awesome if we won together on the pro tour, too.”

Shawn Annarelli is a freelance writer.