Week Three of the St. James Pickleball Association (SJPA) Summer FUN League was played on a beautiful, sunny, relatively wind-free evening at the Rymer Courts.
We had 40 players who made up four mixed teams of players rated 2.5 or 3.0. With 8 courts and 6 rounds of play, each team played 24 games in 90 minutes.
The teams were led by Captains Holly Ahrens – Blue Team, Rosemary Reinis – White Team, Barbara Shanley – Red Team and Mark Thuer – whose team showed up this week in varying shades of Purple, therefore, this week, the Purple Team (FNA – the Gray Team; FNA Green Team – You’ll have to check with the team members to find out the reason for the color change.) The emphasis was once again on fun with some friendly competition thrown in.
The White Team prevailed again this week, with all three remaining teams coming in with a virtual tie for second. Scoring averaged around 7 points each game and each game was capped at 11 points. Four games ended in ties this week.
The event ended with a raffle. Prizes were won by Jim Ahrens, Holly Ahrens and Mark Thuer. A beautiful wood and glass tray, made by Jay Schach, with an embroidered inlay made by Ray Reisen, was a very special prize awarded this week.
This week’s raffle included a test of Pickleball knowledge. The question of the week was:
- What is the Two-Bounce rule?
- Answer:
- When the ball is served, the receiving team must let it bounce before returning, and then the serving team must let it bounce before returning, thus two bounces.
- After the ball has bounced once in each team’s court, both teams may either volley the ball (hit the ball before it bounces) or play it off a bounce (ground stroke).
- The two-bounce rule eliminates the serve and volley advantage and extends rallies
Thanks to everyone who played and everyone who helped coordinate and set-up the event.
There is 1 more week of play on Tuesday, June 28th, from 5:30 to 7:00 pm. Come on out to the Rymer Courts and watch some FUN Pickleball.
