There are leagues and then there are leagues on another level. The Bull City Pickleball League has some of the best 4.0-4.5+ players in the area. The Season 5 Finals take place this Thursday, May 21st at 7 pm at Pickles and Play in Chapel Hill. If you want to see the top two teams face off for final bragging rights, be there. But, buckle up, you are in for a LOT of pickleball.

The top 4 teams in the league were there to PLAYYY! Captain Tyler Hansbrough’s Team Hans had started out the season slow losing their first 4 matches, but rallied mid-season to make it to the semis. They faced the #1 ranked Juicy Pickles whose all-star team led by captain Ryan Gilbert proved a force to be reckoned with. Team Hans boasts the top player in the league Sarinreach Leng. This guy is made of pure electric drive matched with an incredibly aggressive play style and HE IS EVERYWHERE. Low, high, up, down- you can’t get the ball by the guy. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see him on Pickleball TV one day. I was thoroughly impressed when Sid Patil and Kenneth Suarez somehow got a game on him and his teammate Shub . North Hills Park Represent!

On the other side of the aisle, Team BR dominated the night against Hawaiian Style, winning 5-1. Captain Brian Rosenthal brought big OG energy. The league is his brain child, along with Hansbrough, Chris Jaques, and Nathan Evans and in case anyone is wondering - they were here first. You can tell he’s been around the block and back and knows what’s up. He plays unfazed and if you’re on his team he’s “got your back” on every point. Captain Connor Slagill is a stand-in first time captain and brought his very consistent team all the way to the semis - not an easy accomplishment. Their team has some great players, but tonight they couldn’t quite overcome the bane of every pickleball player’s existence - unforced errors. That’s pickleball for you…tighten up those laces and Prince Saurav may be crowned king next season.

This type of league is important for players at higher levels. The higher you go the thinner the crowd. When there aren’t venues like this to raise the level of play, it lowers the bar for everyone. Younger players especially need the opportunity to be challenged by more than just small pockets of competitors. NC State’s top player Chase Brautman has been playing with the big dogs in the area for a long time, when he was younger they’d come pick him up to play and he would eat it up. Now he’s picking them up and taking them for a ride - Chase won all three rounds tonight, Brian and Reach too - all solid contenders for MVP.

At the end of the night, Team Juicy Pickles and Team Hans faced off in an electrifying dream breaker. Tensions were high and benches were deep. The dream breaker is a singles match first to 25, 4 points per player. Everything was even until 8-8. Seasoned anchor Ryan Gilbert put on a goat level performance to give his team an 8-12 lead. The lead held all the way up until the Juicy Pickles were up 24 to 17, but it was Kenny versus Reach…David versus Goliath…. Reach won all 4 points. Kenny had the sword at his neck with a popup, but his overhead smash missed wide - he looked stunned - he doesn’t miss that. But…poetically it was the perfect pop up for the story to have an even juicier overhead smash level ending. Behind Kenny was none other than legendary Mr. Game 7, Justin Williams, the guy whose Carolina Hurricanes resume is so chalk full of clutch moments that it defines him. He won the serve return and then cool as a juicy pickled cucumber proceeded to do what he does best - “ice the win.”

Thursday night we will see just how deep Brian Rosenthal’s bedrock aura goes when they face off Ryan Gilbert’s Juicy Pickles. And while I am slightly biased towards the North Hills Park “golden boy” and his team, it would be all too perfect if the talented team of one of the founders of it all tasted some of the sweet fruits (i.e. Hawaiian pineapples or juicy cucumbers) of the beautiful thing he has created in bringing these awesome players together to trash talk the hell out of each other. And that’s what makes it pickled. In paradise…

This week’s focus….footwork. Better pickleball starts from the ground up…if you are missing your shots, 9 times out of 10 it’s a footwork problem.

Welcome Newcomers!!! Each park in the area has its own vibes, customs and main characters. We can’t wait to dive in to exploring more about each park. We encourage you to visit each park near you at different times of the day to find the best fit for you. Visit Pickled in Paradise News for the complete directory of pickleball parks in the area.

Raleigh - Baileywick Road Park (Covered/Shared Times), Method Road Community Park, North Hills Park, Sanderford Road Park

Durham - Bethesda (Covered/Shared Times), Piney Wood Park

Chapel Hill - Ephesus Road, Southern Community Park

Apex - Apex Community Park, Apex Elementary, Apex Nature Park, Kelly Road Park, Pleasant Park

Cary - Carpenter Park, Ed Yehra Park, Neighborhood Park at McCrimmon Parkway, Walnut Street Park

Clayton - Clayton Community Park

Holly Springs - Ting Park

Knightdale - Harper Park

Morrisville - Morrisville Community Park

Wake Forest - Flaherty Park

We lost an important member of our community this month- Joe Roads, but his bozing spirit lives on. The Joe Turkey Roads Memorial Foundation will be sponsoring a Mascot of the Month section of the Pickled in Paradise Newsletter. Submit entries for your pet here because pets and pickleball are on the same DOPE team.

The PICKLEBEEF™ of the Week highlights the things people do that push us slightly over the edge. Let’s do our best to help keep each other out of the Penalty Box by following the rules. If you have a PICKLEBEEF™ please send it to [email protected].

Much of life is learning what not to do. Here are our hopefully non-local anti-heroes who are learning the hard way that while pickleball points are important, they aren’t THAT important. Or as my dad puts it…”The devil never shows you the end of it….”

The Bull City League is not all trash talk and epic rivalries. Sid Patil of the Juicy Pickles and Chase Brautman of Team BR were The Real Winners this week both on and off the court. Investing in bringing the joy of pickleball to the younger generation is the gold medal that shines forever. Nice double wins for team Paradise. Let’s support the NC State Pickleball Team as they support mentoring our community.