When school became virtual in March due to the coronavirus, East seniors Sienna Sun, Grace Strongman and Emilia Gibbs came up with the idea to start a pickleball club.
They were inspired during quarantine when they noticed the local pickleball courts were always filled with families and friends looking for a socially distanced activity. That dream was put on the back burner until this summer when they played in a pickleball tournament held by their church.
“It was so fun because we hadn’t seen our friends and classmates in such a long time,” Strongman said. “Pickleball seemed to be a good way to get everyone together that was still [socially distanced]”.
This event sparked their recent goal of starting a pickleball club. The idea was perfect because school was soon and they could see their friends and others safely while still having fun.
Sun began emailing Mr. Haney about their new club idea. He was hesitant about the sport as an official club at East because there isn’t a plan for in-person clubs at the moment, but the seniors decided that wasn’t going to stop them from pursuing their idea outside of school.
They started spreading the word, via text and talk, to their classmates, friends and tennis team — Sun brought up her newly founded club as often as she could.
A GroupMe was made with about 30 members to send updates and schedules for upcoming practices and tournaments. Everyone in the group was encouraged to invite their friends — the girls did worry about the amount of people but they made sure to make it clear that they would be socially distanced and wearing masks. They wanted to make sure anyone who wanted to be involved had the opportunity.
Prior to their first meeting at the Meadowbrook courts, Sun made sure to become familiar with the rules of the game: how to keep score, serve and the different zones.
“Before we started the club I went over the rules so that during tournaments I could explain to people [how to play] so it would be less confusing and more fun,” Sun said.
At the beginning of each game the team warms up by passing the plastic wiffle ball back and forth over the net with their wooden paddle. Once everyone is warmed up, they split into teams of two to play doubles. They use a bracket to decide what teams will play who — winners will play winners and losers play losers — until they have an ultimate winner. They keep the competition light hearted to ensure a laid back and fun experience.
The club has played two tournaments at the Meadowbrook pickleball courts so far, each with around 10 people. Tournaments are held on the weekend to avoid school and other weekday activities.
The girls have been enjoying seeing their classmates and friends in a stress free environment. Not having the pressure of an actual competitive sport helps them escape from reality and have fun.
“There’s not any expectation that we’re going to be good,” Gibbs said. “It’s the same as playing ping pong in somebody’s basement, essentially, it’s just for fun.”