The
FUTURE
Pickleball Booming in High School Programs
B
y now, we have all learned that pickleball is the fastest
growing sport in the United States. We also know that the
seniors lead the charge; but, what most people don’t know is
that the junior growth is escalating at nearly the same rate as
the seniors.
If you go online, you’ll see that junior picklball programs are
popping up all over the country – mainly through high school
physical education classes. Cupertino, St. George, Williamston,
Holmen, Little Chute, Bethel Park, Fox Chapel, Mt. Lebanon,
North Allegheny, Peters Township and the list of high schools
now offering pickleball goes on virtually forever.
In obscure pickleball towns like Pittsburgh, the junior
pickleball population dwarfs the adult population. This year,
Pittsburgh hosted the PA Classic State Championships. Roughly
200 adults participated in this first-year event. Pretty good,
right? Well, a couple weeks before the Classic, three local high
schools hosted their own tournament. Nearly 500 kids played
in the one-day, single-elimination tournament.
In Bethel Park High School (cover photo), PE Coach Nick
Santora hosts classroom after classroom of kids interested
in pickleball. He said, “ We have many sport units for kids to
choose from, but pickleball ranks in our top 2 every semester.
When sign-ups begin, those classes are booked fast.” He added,
“It seems that pickleball is easy enough to play that beginners
love it, while the more advanced tennis kids enjoy it equally at a
higher level.”
Just a few miles
away from Bethel
Park, the Chartiers
Valley School District
has an annual
tournament against
the Upper St. Clair
School District.
Approximately 36 high-school students gathered this summer
for their 7th annual Pickleball Challenge. Ron Sciarro, a retired
Chartiers Valley physical education teacher brought pickleball
to the district over 20 years ago and the kids cannot get enough
of it. In 2010, he introduced the Challenge with colleagues
Diane Daeschner,
Suanne Estatico,
and Upper St. Clair
physical education
teacher Shawn
Morton. The kids
team up in doubles
play and have nine
matches. They vary
between boys, girls,
and mixed doubles.
Shawn Morton includes, “Playing pickleball against Chartiers
Valley creates a lot of excitement in our school. The kids are
always asking who is going to play and many times we have
competitions after school to determine this. We try to put
together our best team because C.V. is so talented.”
Diane Daeschner, C.V teacher and intramural coordinator
adds, “Excitement is in the air during pickleball season. Kids
ask when pickleball is starting the first day of school. When
tournament time comes and the kids are ready to play, the
students feel it is an honor to be chosen to represent Chartiers
Valley in the Challenge.”
There is no doubt that the senior pickleball population is
stable and growing, but the opportunity to really blow the sport
up belongs to the juniors. If you’re not already involved, tell
your school’s athletic director about pickleball or, better yet,
volunteer to start an afterschool program at your high school.
The kids will thank you and you’ll love being a part of the
excitement. •
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2016 |
MAGAZINE
3