Popular local pickleball group serves up busy summer schedule

When Linda Marasco founded Soo Pickleball three years ago, she wasn’t exactly sure how well the organization would be received — especially when a pandemic was ready to disrupt their plans at a moment’s notice.

“We went from 19 to 100 players in the first year, then 200 the next, and now I have 475 as of today,” she says. “The pickleball scene in the Sault is really catching on.”

Regarded as one of the fastest growing sports in the country, pickleball is providing enjoyment for beginners and experienced players alike, including in communities like the Sault where access to courts is a hot commodity.

Soo Pickleball officially became a recognized affiliated club of Pickleball Canada and Pickleball Ontario last year, providing the club with opportunities to host several upcoming events this summer.

Months prior, the organization received a huge boost to its programming when eight new pickleball courts were built at the Elliott Sports Complex in 2021.

Helping to keep seniors active, Marasco says she loves the social aspect of the game.

“Everyone is so friendly,” she says. “You can walk on a court at any time, and someone will probably offer you tips on how to play and how to keep score. It’s amazing.”

Pickleball has even served as a matchmaker for a local couple who met each other through the sport before they eventually got married. 

To help continue growing the sport, Marasco was joined by certified instructors at the Elliott courts this past weekend to provide beginner lessons for nearly 50 participants.

The longtime player and coach was thrilled with the response, and she was excited to see participants of all ages had signed up.

“There were lots of seniors of course, but we had a few teenagers sign up as well,” she says. “There were some young children who were enjoying themselves too.”

That younger demographic is one that Marasco has been eyeing for some time now. The Soo Pickleball president would like to see the sport integrated into local schools, and she’s heard from several gym instructors that they’ve begun teaching it.

“Once we have a place to play, we’re hoping to have the kids come in,” she says. “We could have them bussed in for field days and pickleball days. We play on badminton lines, but elementary schools don’t have badminton lines in their gyms.”

“Badminton courts are usually way too close together, too, so we have to put our own vinyl lines down, and people don’t tend to want you to do that. But it’ll get there.”

Marasco says Soo Pickleball is currently working with the city, the curling club, and the tennis association to get a multi-court pickleball facility established in Sault Ste. Marie and help meet the growing demands of the sport.

While many outdoor and indoor tennis courts across town have pickleball lines put inside, the nets are not the same height according to Marasco. She says a new facility would provide more genuine access for pickleball players all year round.

“During a Monday morning social play at Elliott, we had two courts of advanced players and six courts of intermediate and novice players full,” she says. “At times, there were 20 people waiting to play.”

When she’s not setting up indoor leagues inside Clergue and the Tech Complex during the winter months or providing instruction on the courts at the Waterfront Adventure Centre (WAC) in the summer months, Marasco has been busy prepping for some headline events coming up over the next several weeks.

WAC will be hosting their first pickleball tournament on Jul. 8 and features three divisions: beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Teams of two can register here.

Then, from Aug. 11-13, the Sault’s 1st annual Pickleball Ontario Championship Series for the north region will be held at the John Rhodes Community Centre.

“We have 77 entrants for that series, but we want to hit 200,” Marasco says. “We’d love to get a team from North Bay or Sudbury up here and start building a rivalry with them.”