Recaps, Countdown to Sun Bowl Tourney & Our New Partnership!
- 2 days ago
- 6 min read
Updated: 20 hours ago
Haskins Women's Doubles Tournament Draws Competitive Field
1st Place - Bonnie & Paula
2nd Place - Lia & Linda
3rd Place- Debbie & Darlene
The Men's Doubles Tournament will be held on Monday, March 9.
El Paso Players Shine in Santa Fe at Senior Olympics
Big congratulations to our El Paso athletes who traveled to the Senior Olympics in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and dominated in their age divisions on the courts! Their performance was outstanding, with every one of these players officially qualifying for the National Senior Games in Tulsa!
Podium Highlights
Singles
Paula – Gold
Lynda – Gold
Bonnie – Silver
Women's Doubles
Reyna & Lynda – Silver
Bonnie & Paula – Bronze
Mixed Doubles
Bonnie & Jason – Gold
Lynda & Marty – Silver
Reyna & Dennis – 4th Place
Please join us in celebrating these accomplished athletes!
Pickle and Par hosts UPL Kickoff featuring the El Paso Sun City Ballers
Congratulations to our Pickleball El Paso Corporate Member and Pickle and Par owner, Scott Canada, on hosting the successful Sun City Shootout held at Pickle and Par on February 21–22, 2026!
The Shootout, which featured 14 semi-pro teams, served as the official kickoff for the 2026 National UPL season and marked the competitive debut of several athletes on the desert-region rosters. Here is what this means for our local pickleball community:
What is UPL? The Ultimate Pickleball League (UPL) is a newly launched, city-based semi-professional circuit. It bridges the gap between recreational and professional play using a verified rating system to ensure fair, high-level competition across various ages and skill levels.
The El Paso Sun City Ballers: This is our hometown franchise representing El Paso in the UPL's inaugural 2026 season! The Sun City Ballers finished the weekend in the middle of the Top Spin Division standings, trailing the Las Cruces Smash but ahead of the Queen Creek Roadrunners.
Meet the Roster: While the full official team is still being finalized, we are thrilled to announce that these local star players have officially signed to represent El Paso:
Clayton Bench
Justin Cleveland
Isaac Rosales
Monica Schmid
Many local players and fans came out to support, cheer, and play! Players were needed to fill out UPL rosters as many teams had players out with prior tournament commitments. Click here to watch a recap of the weekend featuring other local players!
Nusenda Sun Bowl Tournament Extends Registration to Tuesday, March 10th
Don't miss out! Click below to register:
PEPA members reach out to elizabeth.luscombe@gmail.com for discount code.
Interested in volunteering? Please contact Jay at jpritchard@sunbowl.org. Volunteers needed for taping courts on Thursday (pizza and drinks provided!), and for all three days of the tournament!
Donations of new/unused gift items welcomed for the gift basket raffle. Please contact Terry Avalos at 915-355-3056.
Introducing New Partnership with FYZICAL Therapy, Balance & Hand Center
Pickleball El Paso Association is excited to announce our new partnership with FYZICAL Therapy, Balance & Hand Center!
To keep you strong and injury-free on the court, Fyzical will be supporting our Beginner Clinics and contributing a regular “Tips from the Fyzical Therapist” column to our newsletter. Fyzical President Louie Zuniga recently joined PEPA Vice President, Ben Avalos at the Galatzan Rec Center Beginner Clinic to learn the game firsthand!
We are also thrilled to welcome our new column contributors, Dr. Roy Kohn, PT, DPT and Dr. Andres Fernandez, PT, DPT, who will be sharing their expert recovery and performance advice with our community.
New Feature: Tips from the FYZICAL Therapist
Contributed by Roy Kohn, PT, DPT, FAAOMPT
Staying Healthy on the Pickleball Court: Three Simple Habits
Pickleball is one of the fastest-growing sports in the country—and for good reason. It’s social, competitive, and a great way to stay active. But many aches and pains we see in the clinic come from one simple issue: asking our bodies to do more than they’ve recently been prepared for. The good news is that a few simple habits can dramatically reduce that risk.
1. Ease Your Way Back Into Activity
If you’ve been inactive—or if pickleball is a new activity for you—your body needs time to adapt. A common mistake is going from little activity straight into multiple full matches in one day. Instead, gradually build up your playing time over several weeks. Your muscles, tendons, and joints get stronger with exposure—but they need that exposure in manageable doses. Think of it less as “taking it easy” and more as training your body for the sport.
2. Weekend Activity Isn’t Enough
Playing only once or twice on the weekend often leads to soreness because the body hasn’t been consistently prepared. Adding a few short activity sessions during the week can help tremendously.
This doesn’t have to be complicated:
Walking or light jogging
Squats or step-ups
Balance or agility drills
Even 10–15 minutes a few times per week can help maintain the strength and mobility that pickleball demands.
3. Warm Up Before Your First Game
One of the most common things we see is players stepping out of the car and going straight into a match. A quick warm-up can make a big difference.
Focus on movements that resemble what you’ll do on the court:
Lateral lunges and side steps
Backward stepping
Arm swings and shoulder circles
Gentle paddle swings
The goal isn’t stretching—it’s preparing your body for movement.
Pickleball is a fantastic lifelong sport. With a little preparation and gradual progression, most people can enjoy the game for many years to come.
Roy Kohn, PT, DPT, FAAOMPT
Roy Kohn is a fellowship-trained physical therapist and Director of Education with Fyzical Therapy & Balance Centers in El Paso. He enjoys helping athletes and recreational players stay active and return confidently to the sports they love.
Dink of the Day: Placement Over Power
Contributed by PEPA member, Juan Balderrama
We’ve all heard the adage: if you want to get better at pickleball, play with better players. But there’s a catch: when you only play higher-skilled opponents, you rarely get to develop your own shots. You spend the whole game reacting to their pace instead of formulating your own strategy. I have had the pleasure of playing with higher-skilled players who, instead of just overpowering their less-skilled opponents, use the time to work on their own shot placement.
Today, we'll look at three underutilized shots you can practice while playing "down." Learn to use games against less-experienced players as a way to refine your placement rather than relying on raw power.
1. The Serve: Tactical Positioning
Stop thinking of the serve as a point-winner. Instead, use it as a tool to advance to the kitchen or pull your opponents out of position.
Go Deep: Force your opponents to stay back near the baseline.
Mix It Up: Once they expect the deep ball, surprise them with an angled or short serve.
Add Variety: As you get consistent, experiment with spin to create unpredictable bounces.
2. The Third Shot Drop: Your Ticket to the Kitchen
This is the most critical shot for advancing your game. Unlike a hard drive, a well-placed drop reaches its highest point (the apex) on your side of the court and lands softly in the opponent's kitchen. Repeatedly using a drive against more experienced players is a recipe for defeat.
The Goal: It gives you and your partner time to safely reach the kitchen line.
The Result: A drop forces your opponent to dink rather than drive the ball back at you.
3. The Dink: Patience Wins Points
The dink is the shot we all warm up with, only to never use again! It isn’t just for warm-ups; it’s a shot that requires extreme patience. This soft shot arches over the net and lands in the non-volley zone (the kitchen). Be patient and let your opponent make the mistakes.
Strategic Use: When a return is low, don't attack it—dink it. Attacking a low dink aggressively often leads to hitting it into the net.
Create Openings: Sharp angles can pull your opponent out of position and create an opening when the ball is returned high.
Pull Them Forward: For newer players who stay back, place the ball a few feet in front of them to slowly "pull" them into the kitchen.
Final Thought:
We were all new players once. Be a mentor on the court today—some of those beginners might just become your toughest competition next year.
Mark Your Calendars
See you on the courts!
Liz Luscombe
Newsletter Director
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