¿ìÉ«ÊÓƵ Pickleball celebrates heading to nationals during opening of new home court
The ¿ìÉ«ÊÓƵ Pickleball Club celebrated winning regionals, heading to nationals and the opening of the new pickleball court at the ¿ìÉ«ÊÓƵ Tennis Complex last week.
The ¿ìÉ«ÊÓƵ's Pickleball Club recently competed in the Dynamic Universal Pickleball Rating (DUPR) Collegiate Pickleball Super Regional in Buford, Georgia, finishing 6th out of 36 teams en route to clinching a bid to compete at the DUPR Nationals in the fall. During the regional tournament, ¿ìÉ«ÊÓƵ secured wins over teams from Virginia Tech, University of Kentucky and more.
Last Tuesday, Athletics and Student Government unveiled upgrades made to the ¿ìÉ«ÊÓƵ Tennis Complex, including the addition of the first true pickleball courts. The four courts are the resurfaced and repainted tennis complex stadium tennis court which includes scoreboards, a permanent sound system and new fencing. LED broadcast-level lighting was also added, making this the first court with lights, which will help the Pickleball Club as they prepare for the DUPR Nationals.
Last fall, the ¿ìÉ«ÊÓƵ team finished 17th in the nation at the DUPR Nationals.
¿ìÉ«ÊÓƵ’s Pickleball Club was founded in 2022 by student Courtney Hughes after recognizing a growing interest in her hometown of Jacksonville. What started with about 10 participants showing up for practice has evolved into a competitive team of 20 players and 165 members signed up for the open club, some of whom had no prior experience playing.
The ¿ìÉ«ÊÓƵ Pickleball Club will host open rec on Tuesday and Friday afternoons from 3 to 5 p.m. on the new court for the campus community to participate in.