2nd Annual SRV Pickleball Open Recap
The 2nd Annual Strong River Valley Pickleball Open took place on Saturday at the Valley City Municipal Complex pickleball courts. There was a big raucous crowd, and everyone was excited about this event. Pickleball fever has finally found its way into The Valley, and it’s not letting up anytime soon. Last year, most of the players were from central MS, but this year’s tournament drew players from all across MS. The SRVO is thrilled to sponsor this tournament, and we look forward to supporting it for years to come.
Last year’s tournament was only for women, but men were allowed to play this year. Men’s singles, men’s doubles, and mixed doubles divisions were added to this year’s event. So, there were more than double the participants in this year’s tournament. This year’s tournament results also went toward the MS Pickleball Tour’s rankings, so that was a big draw for the players.
The Valley fans were amazed with all the BMWs, Mercedes, and Audi vehicles with Hinds and Madison County plates. There were more 30A stickers than you could shake a stick at. The pickle ballers and their fans from outside The Valley were amazed at the mullets, tattoos, and vaping of the Valleyans. It’s quite a contrast, but it’s a beautiful thing.
Mary Grace Evert was back to defend her women’s singles title from last year. She is currently ranked #1 in MS. She breezed through the draw, but she did face a battle in the final. Valleyan, Veanus Vanderford, gave her a scare in the finals, but Evert pulled through in the end.
The Valley’s favorite women’s doubles duo, Sarena Smith and Veanus Vanderford, showed out again this year. They were determined to win it this year; they’ve been working hard since they came up short last year. Their hard work paid off, and they brought home the trophy this year. The duo’s fans were instrumental in their run; they were raucous and they willed them to the title. Smith said, “I’ve worked hard on my fitness, and I’ve cut out gas station pizza and fried catfish. It paid off! I’m so happy!” Vanderford added, “Sarena inspired me, so I stopped vaping and got my act together. We’ve worked so hard! We’re the champs!”
The men’s doubles draw was the one to watch. There was a ton of drama. Jonny McEnroe and Steve Edberg breezed their way to the final. The attorneys from Madison are the #1 ranked team in MS. They faced the young upstarts from Strong River Bend, Ethan Burnham and Owen Patrick. The teens are baseball players that have recently picked up pickleball as a hobby to try to pickup girls. No one expected the teen duo to do well, but they played very hard and made their way to the final. Valley fans were not fond of the smug duo from Madison, and the attorneys seemed to relish in the crowd’s animosity. At one point, the young duo’s supporters started a Let’s Go Brandon chant that briefly halted play.
The young duo got off to a hot start on McEnroe and Edberg. The boys’ families and friends were so pumped and loud, and it was clearly affecting the attorneys from Madison. But, in the end, the experience of the elder duo paid off, and they won a tight match. McEnroe said, “It got a little crazy, but we pulled through in the end. These fans from The Valley are insane. I’ve never seen so many mullets, tattoos, and vaping in my life. The only thing that could possibly be worse than listening to these fans would be attending a Florida Georgia Line concert. And, they had more than water and sweet tea in those red Solo cups. But, we’ll be back by popular demand next year to defend our title.”
Owen Patrick said, “We didn’t know what to expect; we were just out here having fun. Our fans were awesome, and we can’t wait til next year! I got a couple Madison girls’ numbers and IG follows, so that was a good thing too. I think it’s my mullet perm. Those lawyers from Madison better be ready next year. We coming baby!”
A tournament goer nicknamed the Valley fans the Solo Cup Brigade. A ton of them were walking around with red Solo cups sipping on something. Alcohol is prohibited on the grounds of the Valley City Municipal Complex, so we there’s no way it could be alcohol right? One Valley fan said, “The Solo Cup Brigade! I love it baby! We’ll have red t-shirts next year with that on it. They’ve created a monster!”
The men’s singles title was won by Rafie Jokavich, and that was no surprise. The #1 ranked male in MS breezed through the draw while barely breaking a sweat.
I left before the mixed doubles final was over, and I haven’t received the results. No one cares to be honest; no one was watching the mixed doubles matches anyway.
We’ll see you next year at the SRV Open. This event is going to be a big draw going forward, and the SRVO is just honored to be a part of it.