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BND United Hockey hosting pickleball tournament fundraiser

By Press Release

Press Release:

BND United Hockey is excited to announce its Pickleball Tournament, scheduled for Sunday, August 18. The event will take place at Batavia High School, located at 260 State St., Batavia on the tennis courts.

The tournament will feature two sessions:

  • AM Flight: 9 a.m. - Noon
  • PM Flight: 1 - 4 p.m. (if needed)

This fun, non-sanctioned event is designed to bring pickleball enthusiasts together while supporting the BND United Hockey program. The cost to participate is $20 per person or $40 per team, with a doubles format.

Participants will enjoy a hot dog, water, outdoor games (cornhole, can jam, ping pong), and music. For those who need a doubles partner, arrangements will be made.

To register, please contact John Kirkwood at jkusa1989@gmail.com. Indicate your preferred session or your availability for either. Registration fees can be paid via check made out to BND United Hockey, Venmo @John-Kirkwood-13, or cash on the day of the event.

Prizes will be awarded to the winning teams in each flight, and the tournament will help raise funds for the upcoming hockey season.

For more information, please contact John Kirkwood at the email address above.

PHOTOS: YMCA second annual Fall Pickleball Tournament

By Steve Ognibene

This past wednesday night was the YMCA second annual Fall Pickleball Tournament. First place went to Mike Lear and Steve Ognibene, pictured center. Second place went to Josephine Fallado and Mike Ianni, pictured far left. Third place went to Larry Riegel and Art Smith, pictured far right.

The event was organized by the Pickleball Club Committee -- Sue Lewis, Karen Spiotta, Chloe Budenhagen and Becky Swanson. The tournament was a fun night with lots of excellent pickleball play. 

If you would like to learn how to play, come to the YMCA on Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9 a.m. to noon, or Wednesday evenings from 6:30 to 9. You do not have to be a YMCA member to play and can purchase a pickleball card at the front desk or ask to try it out for the day.

Pickleball indoor or outdoor, it’s here in Batavia

By Steve Ognibene

(Photos by Steve Ognibene. Story by Phil Coburn.)

Pickleball you say? If you’re wondering what this is, it’s a relatively new sport activity in Batavia! It’s lots of fun, easy to learn, and is one of the fastest-growing sports in America. 

The game is a combination of tennis, badminton and ping pong, and is played over a net that is 2 inches lower than a tennis net. The court is 20 feet x 44 feet, about half the size of a tennis court. The ball is a perforated plastic ball similar to a whiffle ball, and the paddles are wood or composite material.

The game is adaptable to all ages from youth to seniors, and both male and female. Due to the smaller court and lighter ball, it requires much less running and has less impact on the knees, arms and shoulders than tennis.

Locally, it all started after Batavia residents Phil and Bonnie Coburn decided to travel in an RV across the United States in 2007. They had often said “What will we do if we can’t play tennis anymore?" Well, very quickly they saw some pickleball being played, and they became hooked! Upon returning to Batavia, they located a group in Ogden and played there for a couple years.

Then, after getting tired of driving 25 miles each way, they spoke to the people at the YMCA in Batavia in 2012, and they agreed to let them tape two courts in the gym. They got help from Dave Thomas in Rochester to do the layout, and he also gave them a portable net to use. They obtained grant money from the USAPA, and bought another portable net.

Thus, pickleball was born in Batavia with about six players participating.

About two years later, the gym floor was refinished, and the lines were painted on for a more permanent facility. At about the same time, Eric Volk lent a hand, and they worked with the Town of Batavia to have pickleball lines painted on the tennis courts at Kiwanis Park (replacing the tape which didn’t do too well in the elements), adding the first outside courts in the area.

This year, again with encouragement from Eric, the city, as part of the court renewal at Kibbe Park and Farrall Park, painted pickleball lines on the tennis courts, giving participants an additional five outdoor courts to play on in the area.

(At one of the newest lined courts at Kibbe Park, pictured below are some members of the Batavia Pickleball Club, from left are: Joann McCabe, Chloe Budenhagen, Becky Swanson, and founding members Bonnie and Phil Coburn.)

The YMCA has been very supportive of this activity, and currently there is play scheduled in the gym on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to noon, and Wednesday nights from 6:30-8 p.m.. Currently, every Saturday from 9:30-noon, players are welcome at Kibbe Park. Partners are not assigned, but use the "open" system of rotation for players waiting to play.

From the original six players, it has grown to around 30 fairly active players, and the ability level has definitely increased since those early days. There has been some discussion about holding a tournament next year for our local players, but there are no details available yet.

The club is always looking for additional players to try the sport, and to continue to help this activity gain momentum in Genesee County. Pickleball has become part of Physical Education in many schools, and is played in many parks and recreational facilities across the country. The Batavia YMCA has set the cost for non-Y members at $30 for a 10-play pass, $49 for a 7-week unlimited pass, or a $5 "drop-in" pass. No fee for Saturday play.

YMCA hosts Batavia's first Pickleball Tournament

By Howard B. Owens

Two dozen players turned out to the YMCA today for Batavia's first-ever Pickleball Tournament.

Pickleball was created in Seattle in 1967 and now is the fastest-growing sport for people 50 and older, according to local pickleball "ambassador" Timothy Pickering (a former resident of San Diego who has moved with his wife to Batavia). 

Players use paddles to hit a plastic whiffleball-like ball over a net, something like tennis.

Pickering hosts regular games and clinics at the Y.

Chuck Northrup and John Bender won this first tournament.

Photos by Howard Owens.

Photo submitted by Timothy Pickering. Pictured, Ray Burke and Eric Robinson, third place; Chuck Northrup and John Bender, first place; Karen Spiotta and Jason Santere, second place. Pickering, tournament director, is kneeling. 

All of the entrants in the tournament. Photo submitted by Timothy Pickering.

First Batavia Pickleball Tournament is Saturday

By Billie Owens

The first Batavia Pickleball Tournament is being held at the Batavia YMCA from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 17. Registration is $15, $5 of which will go to support the Batavia WMCA. Double elimination format. Partner blind draw on day of tournament.

The tournament is open to the first 32 players.

Format: Each match will be 11 points by 2 except for finals. Consolation round winner will play one 15-point game against the winner's bracket. If the winner's bracket triumphs, they win the tournament. If not, then there will be a 2-out-of-three game match to determine the champion. These games will be 11 points by 2.

For more information, contact Timothy Pickering at (585) 219-4686 or at  timothy77777@hotmail.com

Registration deadline is Friday, May 16.

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