Reviving WashU Club Pickleball: A Competitive Branch Emerges
WashU Club Pickleball Takes Competitive Approach with New Team Formation
In recent news, WashU Club Pickleball has taken a competitive turn with the formation of a new team that aims to compete in collegiate pickleball tournaments later this year. The tryouts for the competitive team attracted over 80 students, from which seven female and seven male players were selected by the seven-member executive team.
Pickleball has been gaining popularity among WashU students in recent years, with the pickleball GroupMe chat boasting 484 members. However, first-year Noe Schwartz, competitive branch co-vice president and co-captain, estimated the number of active members to be around 150.
Senior Justin Xu, an avid pickleball player, is a co-president of the competitive branch of the club. Xu stated, “One of the main goals for WashU’s pickleball club is to provide an inclusive space for players of all skill levels.”
Senior Ava Schumacher, the other co-president of WashU Club Pickleball, primarily coordinates open play opportunities for the club. She mentioned that while open play is great for all levels, some players expressed interest in having more competitive opportunities.
The current executive leadership of the club worked closely with WashU Rec to revive the pickleball club and take it to the competitive level with the newly formed team. The executive team consulted local pickleball pro John Callahan and other leadership figures in the local pickleball community for support in starting the competitive branch.
Tryouts were described as “hectic” due to the large amount of interest in the team, with so many talented players that the executive team decided to take more players than originally planned. The competitive team practices at an indoor racket sports facility and plans to compete in various tournaments, including the Georgia Super Regionals in Atlanta.
First-year law student Barry Zhang, one of three graduate students on the competitive team, expressed his excitement about the formation and future of the team, stating, “I’m lucky that I came [to WashU] this year because everything’s coming together right now … The execs have really pulled it together. We have so much stuff going on now. It’s really exciting.”
Overall, the formation of the competitive team signifies a new chapter for WashU Club Pickleball, showcasing the growing popularity and passion for the sport among students.
