Pickleball arrives in Adams Township
ADAMS TWP — Locals and visitors to the township have a new place to participate in an increasingly popular sport.
Four pickleball courts now are available for pickup games at Adams Township Community Park from 7 a.m. to dark.
“It’s first come, first served with four courts total,” said township Parks and Recreation director Haley Zaliponi in an email. “We have ordered sport lights to be installed to extend the hours of play till 10 p.m., (and) this will hopefully be scheduled in the coming weeks.”
The courts already have garnered interest from residents and locals since their opening last week.
On Monday afternoon, brothers Justin and Jason Bloom ventured to the courts to try their hand at the paddle sport.
It was Justin’s second time playing the game, and Jason’s first.
“My dad is really into pickleball,” Justin Bloom said. “I just thought it would be something good to do with the family, and it’s easy. My daughter played the last time we were here. It’s an easy game to pick up, though what I’ve heard is it’s an easy game to start playing, and a hard game to master.”
Stella Rossi, 10, Emma Libert, 17, Amy Libert and Jeff Rossi gathered on one of the courts to play a doubles game.
The group has visited other pickleball courts to play, including those in Cranberry Township and North Park in Allegheny County.
“During COVID, I had gym, and we had just started the pickleball unit,” Emma said. “We were about a week in, and then we just stopped. And (Amy) has been nonstop trying to get me here.”
“I ask all the time,” Amy Libert, who is Emma’s mom, said. She learned to play pickleball on a trip to Arizona.
“Usually in the evening, these courts are packed,” Rossi said. “Anytime I’ve come back in the last week or two, it’s been busy.”
The court does not have a formal league or sign-up process, but does include a courtesy sign asking players to limit matches to 60 minutes and place their paddles on a hook to wait in line.
“We’ve been looking forward to this for a year and a half, since we read about it in the paper,” Rossi said. “We really enjoy playing pickleball.”
