Chris De La Rosa, of Butler, rises up for a layup during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Demetrius Lockley, center, of Butler, breaks through a defensive press during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
For the past year and a half, the basketball court at the Butler YMCA has had a rotating roster of players whose dedication to the game is demonstrated by their sweat event, though the teams don’t even always keep score.
This is the best workout some of the players get each week, in terms of activity and enjoyment, according to some of the players.
“It’s more fun than lifting or running on a treadmill,” Dylan Mentzer, of Butler, said Sunday morning, Jan. 14. “The guys here are good at rotating people in and out. Everyone gets to play.”
Mentzer said he goes to the YMCA most Sunday mornings to play basketball with the pickup crew. He said no one in the group of nearly 20 people is officially in charge of the Sunday morning games, and the people who play are welcoming to newcomers.
Chris De La Rosa said he has been playing basketball Sunday mornings for about a year now. He said playing with a group of people, many of them strangers, has not only been a good workout, but has improved his game as well.
“There is always a lot of energy here,” De La Rosa said.
In the gymnasium on the opposite side of the second floor in the YMCA Sunday morning, about a dozen people were playing pickup games of pickleball. Denny Zellefrow, who said he plays and teaches pickleball, said the gym is most crowded in the winter, when people hungry to play pickleball can’t go to courts in Ritts Park or Butler Township Park.
The courts Sunday morning were particular crowded, according to Zellefrow.
“This is the most I have ever seen on a Sunday,” Zellefrow said. “During the week you get 25 to 35 people here.”
Mary Baxter, of Butler, said she has been playing pickleball at the YMCA for a few years, and the sport has only grown more popular.
“More people are playing,” Baxter said. “I come every week to play with people here.”
Zellefrow said most people bring their own pickleball paddles to play at the YMCA, but he usually has some extras with him for people to use.
While the basketball court and the pickleball courts were crowded with people Sunday morning, players on each court said new people can join in at any time.
“Everyone is welcoming,” said Terral Whittington, of Beaver Falls.
Mentzer said Sunday is his usual basketball day at the YMCA, so while there might be pickup games throughout the week, Sundays are usually a safe bet for a crowd.
“Sundays are the time to come,” Mentzer said.
Demetrius Lockley, of Butler, waits for the next pickup basketball game on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Claude Clark, right, of Butler, dribbles the ball out to the three-point line during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Terral Whittington, left of Beaver Falls, dribbles up against tight defense from Elvis Pina, of Butler, during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Justin Johnson, of Butler, fires a pass down court during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Terral Whittington, of Beaver Falls, throws a pass into the paint during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle.
Kyle Prudhomme
Justin Johnson, of Butler, takes the ball up court during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Desean Lockley, of Butler, dribbles down the court during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Dylan Mentzer, of Butler, gathers himself before taking a three-pointer during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Damien Pickett unloads a pass during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Chris De La Rosa, left, of Butler, dribbles against the defense of Dylan Meltzer, of Butler, during a pickup game on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Demetrius Lockley, of Butler, holds onto the ball as a call is decided on the court during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Elvis Pina, left, of the Dominican Republic, plays tight defense during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Elvis Pina, of the Dominican Republic, dribbles down court during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Cold weather did not halt Butler residents from stopping into the YMCA for a sweat on Sunday, Jan. 14. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Chris De La Rosa, formerly of the Dominican Republic, rises up for a layup during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
Demetrius Lockley, of Butler, drives into the paint during pickup on Sunday, Jan. 14, at the Butler YMCA. Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle
Kyle Prudhomme
