Columbus Tops New Jersey for Pickleball Title

Pickleball seems to be the rage right now and this weekend the Columbus Sliders pickleball team won the Major League Pickleball (MLP) championship by defeating the New Jersey 5s in a thrilling final.

Central Park in New York was the site of the championship weekend. Columbus entered the tournament as the underdogs as the #5 seed.

In the final, both New Jersey and Columbus brought great energy. New Jersey took a 2-1 lead and had their dominant mixed pair of Anna Leigh Waters and Will Howells for the last game. But Andrei Daescu and Parris Todd played one of their best great games winning 11-2 to send match #1 to a DreamBreaker. 

A Dreambreaker is a singles-based pickleball tiebreaker when team match scores are tied 2-2 after the four initial games. In this format, each team's four players rotate to play singles for four points at a time, with rally scoring used to reach a target score of 21, win by two. The twist is the tactical lineup strategy: the first team to present its lineup, and the second team counters with their own configuration to counter the opponent's players' skills.

In the Dreambreaker, New Jersey was able to close it out 21-17.

In the second match, New Jersey easily won the women’s doubles and Columbus took the men’s doubles. Meghan Dizon and Noe Khlif defeated Lea Jansen and CJ Klinger again, giving Waters and Howells the ball and the chance to close it all out. But Todd and Daescu came up big, winning 11-8 and forcing another DreamBreaker. Columbus flipped the script in the second DreamBreaker, maintaining a lead throughout for a 21-15 win.

It all came down to a third match. New Jersey won the women’s doubles for the third straight time and Columbus won the men’s doubles for the third straight time. But in mixed, Jansen and Klinger gutted out a very tough and pressure-filled win 11-4. That set the stage for Waters/Howells vs. Todd/Daescu, round #3. Todd and Daescu decided they had played enough and finished it off with an 11-6 win and took the title. Todd earned the clinching point right down the line with a drive right down the line.

Watch the final match here: https://youtu.be/UGhzK4cG4Lw?si=BvK91k1U9ypy-I5C

The league also announced the formation of the Palm Beach Royals which will be an expansion team next season.

Recap of the MLP season:

Premier Division

1. St. Louis Shock (24-1)
2. Dallas Flash (22-3)
3. New Jersey 5S (20-5)
4. Brooklyn Pickleball Team (18-7)
5. Columbus Sliders (18-7)
6. Los Angeles Mad Drops (18-7)
7. Texas Ranchers (15-10)
8. Orlando Squeeze (15-10)
9. Utah Black Diamonds (12-13)
10. Miami Pickleball Club (8-17)
11. Chicago Slice (5-20)
12. Phoenix Flames (6-19)
13. Atlanta Bouncers (6-19)
14. Carolina Hogs (5-20)
15. Southern California Hard Eights (4-21)
16. New York Hustlers (4-21)

Championship Tournament Results

Columbus 3, St. Louis 0
Columbus 3, St. Louis 2
(Columbus wins 2-0)

New Jersey 3, Los Angeles 0
New Jersey 3, Los Angeles 0
(New Jersey wins 2-0)

New Jersey 3, Columbus 2
Columbus 3, New Jersey 2
Columbus 3, New Jersey 1
(Columbus wins 2-1)

Challenger Division

1. Las Vegas Night Owls (21-4)
2. Nashville Chefs (16-9)
3. California Black Bears (12-13)
4. D.C. Pickleball Team (11-14)
5. Bay Area Breakers (10-15)
6. Florida Smash (5-20)

Championship Tournament Results
Las Vegas 3, Nashville 1
Nashville 3, Las Vegas 1
Las Vegas 3, Nashville 2
(Las Vegas wins 2-1)