Tournaments! Beast Expansion Updates & UTEP OLLI National Honors

9 hours ago
5 min read

The March 6th deadline to register for the Nusenda SunBowl Tournament is fast approaching. Don't miss out!

PEPA members: Email elizabeth.luscombe@gmail.com for your discount code!
Click HERE to register.
Vendors: $50 for all three days. Please contact Jay at jpritchard@sunbowl.org.

Tournament Raffle!

Whether you are competing or cheering from the sidelines, you can support the tournament's success by contributing to the raffle. A gift basket raffle will be held at the tournament, with all proceeds benefiting Pickleball El Paso’s advocacy and outreach efforts. We are seeking brand-new or unused items—both pickleball-related items and general gifts (gift cards, movie tickets, wine, lotions, etc.). Terry Avalos will magically transform these donations into festive themed baskets!

To donate: Please contact Terry at 915-355-3056.

Upcoming Rec Center Tournaments

Updates from The Beast Urban Park Pre-Construction Meeting

The Beast is Growing: Phase II is Officially Underway!

Big news for El Paso pickleball! PEPA President Ida Chavira, along with several dedicated community supporters, recently attended The Beast (formerly Eastside Regional Park) Phase II Pre-construction Open House on February 4th.

The Highlights:

A Major Expansion: Attendees met with District 5 Representative Ivan Niño, City staff, and project managers Steven and Michael Sambrano of Gracen Engineering & Construction, Inc. to review the expansion plans.
Groundbreaking Ceremony: March 18, 2026, at 3:00 PM. Mark your calendars—let’s show the city our support for these 10 new courts!
The Timeline: Construction is set for completion in Spring 2027.

Pickleball enthusiasts, and Representative Niño with project managers Steven and Michael Sambrano of Gracen Engineering & Construction, Inc.

(Pictured left to right: Manny, Rey, Steven, Michael, Mary, Representative Niño, PEPA President Ida Chavira)

UTEP OLLI Pickleball Club Receives National Recognition

**UTEP's OLLI program was the first in the nation to offer pickleball. The club is led by PEPA Vice President Ben Avalos and PEPA Member Don Smelser**

Every month, the Osher National Resource Center (NRC) sends a newsletter to share ideas and news across the network of Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes (OLLI). Currently there are 125 OLLI's located in universities throughout the United States. The following is an excerpt of the article submitted by Lynn Provenzano, Executive Director of UTEP's OLLI program. It appeared in the NRC February 2026 issue.

Since pickleball’s invention in 1965, its simplicity, accessibility, and social nature have helped make it one of the fastest-growing sports in the United States. That same energy is showing up at Osher Institutes across the Network, where pickleball is becoming both popular and, for some, a healthy habit-forming part of weekly life for members of all ages.

OLLI at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is one great example. There, a deeply committed group has turned pickleball into a true phenomenon.

The OLLI Pickleball Club launched in Fall of 2023. Pickleball took off, with more than 20% of OLLI members actively playing and more joining each month.

The Pickleball Club was originally a dream of beloved member and avid player Randy Limbird, who hoped pickleball would become central to OLLI. Randy passed away before seeing that vision fully realized, but in 2023, friends Ben Avalos and Don Smelser stepped forward to carry it on in his memory. Today, the group plays vigorously every Tuesday and Thursday. Many participants even schedule classes on those days so they can pair the camaraderie and health benefits of pickleball with the intellectual stimulation they value at OLLI.

The OLLI Pickleball Club meets just down the hall from UTEP's student-run food pantry. Randy had long supported efforts to address food insecurity, and the proximity sparked action. The OLLI Pickleball Club helped ignite broader support across the membership. Donating, volunteering, and rallying around the pantry’s work became part of OLLI culture. Entry “fees” for internal pickleball tournaments are collected as food donations, and a recent tournament generated 370 pounds of food for the approximately 200 UTEP students the pantry serves each month.

Fun is a major part of this story, too. Last July, the club celebrated pickleball’s 60th anniversary by showing up in 1960s outfits for themed play. The best look of the day earned a perfectly on-theme prize: an impressively large jar of pickles.

Dink of the Day: Defending Against the Lob

Submitted by PEPA member, Juan Balderrama

A lob is a high-arching shot designed to sail over your head to force you away from the kitchen line. It is often used offensively to create a scoring opportunity, but it can also be used defensively to buy time and reset a rally.

Here are the two ways to return a lob like a pro:

1. The Overhead Smash (the aggressive return)

Best used when the lob is short or lands in the front-to-mid court.

How to do it:

Turn and Track: Immediately turn your body sideways (like a surfer). Never backpedal! Instead, use a sideways shuffle to stay balanced and avoid falling.
The "Trophy Pose": Bring your paddle back behind your head and point at the ball with your non-paddle hand. This helps with tracking and timing.
Positioning: Shuffle until the ball is slightly in front of your body, then stabilize your feet.
The Finish: Swing through the ball with a high-to-low motion, rotating your hips as if you were throwing a baseball.
Timing is everything! If you hit it too early, it’ll sail long. Hit it too late, and you’ll hit it right into the net.

2. Retrieval Off the Bounce (the defensive save)

Best used when the ball is hit deep over your head, requiring a chase toward the baseline.

How to do it:

The Chase: Turn and run toward the baseline. Don’t run directly behind the ball—stay slightly to the side of it so you have room to swing once you reach it.
Choose Your Return: Once the ball bounces, you have three options:
- The Defensive Drop: Hit a soft arc back into the opponent's kitchen so you can safely move forward.
- The Drive: A hard, low shot aimed to catch the opponents off guard as they move up.
- The Re-Lob: Buy yourself time by hitting a lob right back at them, allowing you and your partner to regain your footing.

To sum it all up:

Short Lob - Go for the overhead smash!
Deep Lob - Chase it (sideways!), let it bounce, and reset the point.

Recent Tournament Highlights & Results

Sun City Pickers Classic (February 7th): Great play by all for a very good cause!

Don Haskins Rec Center Tournament (February 9th)

1st Place: Dina & Sebastian

2nd Place: Patty & Louie

3rd Place: Niluk & Lia

PEPA Beginner's Clinics

We've had great turnouts at the PEPA-led Beginner Clinics around the city. A warm welcome to all the new players who joined our clinics this month! We love seeing the community grow.