22nd article at the Independent

Pickleball picking up steam at Marshall YMCA

CHRIS DRUMMOND cdrummond@marshallindependent.com

There was a time in my life that the words pickle or ball would never come together as one. I dislike pickles to this day but love playing every sport with a ball except cricket because for the life of me I can’t understand it. However, a sudden phenomenon has swept across the United States combining multiple sports called pickleball. I had the opportunity to chat with some players and discover their love for the game and also developed my intrigue to play.

Pickleball was founded in 1965 by former Congressman Joel Pritchard and businessman Bill Bell. It is a sport that is comprised of tennis, badminton and ping-pong. Pickleball can be played outdoors and indoors with multiple players at one time. The rules of the game are very similar to tennis as a serve will take place but never a second serve. When you play doubles everyone has to serve and you play until the first team can score 11 points.

It is a sport that is growing in popularity across North America and was implemented into the Marshall YMCA programs about two years ago. YMCA employee Dave Lange, who is an active player of pickleball, explained how he started playing and the expansion of the sport at the YMCA.

“We’re gonna need more courts, we have four brand new nets, which is $400 dollars apiece which are very nice,” Lange said. “I started playing about four months ago when we started in here. Everyone is getting better, it’s enjoyable and it’s a sociable thing.”

Retired citizen Jeff Mauland from Cottonwood has been playing since the beginning and spoke on his origins of getting into the sport and how much he has liked it.

“I had a friend who was playing it and he told me to come down and try it, so I did,” Mauland said. “The schedule works pretty good for me and we usually get a good competitive group down here.”

The age ranges of players are typically between 60-75, but anyone of all ages can play this sport. It is a fun way to be active, network and learn a new sport that you can play no matter what the weather is because it can be played indoors. YMCA Director of Sports and Recreation Ryan Baedke advocated about the growing popularity of pickleball in the Marshall community.

“It was going strong here when I joined the YMCA in August,” Baedke said. “I would say that we have been doing this for two years. A lot of the players we have playing are retired or part-time, having more court space to play in the mornings especially since the kids are in school.”

For new players who are interested, pickleball is played at the YMCA on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9 a.m.-noon with set-up occuring around 8:30 a.m.

— Chris Drummond is a sports reporter

for the Marshall Independent.

Email: cdrummond@marshallindependent.com

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