SPS Rallies for Pickleball Club

Popular sport brings students together for weekend fun, exercise and friendship.

BY JACQUELINE PRIMO LEMMON

On a sunny spring Sunday, while some students enjoyed bagels at Kwok Café and others met up in Ohrstrom Library to study, more than 50 of them packed the outdoor tennis courts — some dressed for a costume contest, others in color-coordinated activewear to match their teammates — to play pickleball. If there is any question that the national craze is alive and well at St. Paul’s School, consider this: nearly 40% of the student body belongs to the SPS Pickleball Club, which offers an opportunity for fun and exercise without the pressure of formal competition, and for those of all experience levels (or none) to play together.

Club co-heads Maude Niemann ’25, Charlotte “Charlie” Voge ’25, Craig Burton ’25 and Kristof Lovegren ’25 are excited about how popular their club — new this academic year — is among their peers. It’s not uncommon for as many as 100 students to show up for open play and tournaments, says Niemann, who enjoys the opportunity to teach others some basic rules of the game so they can jump in right away.

Niemann says the idea for the club came to her after spending every day of her 2023 Spring Vacation playing pickleball with her mother. “I had so much fun playing with and meeting new people. I was fascinated by how easy it was to pick up and how so many age groups played,” she says. “It became my new favorite thing … and I wanted to share that joy with SPS.”

With more than 200 students ready to grab their paddles and hit the courts, the Pickleball Club hosted open play on Sundays all three terms this year, as well as tournaments with prizes. Faculty members even join in on occasion. During Winter Term, a tournament was paired with — naturally — a pickle feed with eight flavors of pickles.

Girls hockey coach and Humanities Teacher Kelli Mackey is a casual player and was happy to come aboard as club adviser when Niemann and Voge asked. “A lot of our [hockey] team goes to events and is in the club,” Mackey says. “It’s a great way to meet people if you’re open, and just have fun and break a sweat and enjoy your Sunday off.”

The club ended the year with a student vs. faculty tournament fundraiser that Niemann proudly reports raised $640 for Concord Hospital’s Payson Center for Cancer Care. Mackey says she hopes that in the fall incoming students will see the club as yet another avenue for finding their place in the School community.

Pickleball Tournament May 2024