Lake County Gazette

The Coal City High School Pickleball Club held its first fall tournament, drawing attention for both competitive play and strong sportsmanship. The event featured several student teams, with Mason Garner and Brock Finch dominating the early rounds in a double-elimination format until they faced Devon McVey and Carsen Hart. McVey and Hart handed Garner and Finch their only loss, leading to a final rematch.

After a short break, Garner and Finch returned to defeat McVey and Hart, securing first place. McVey and Hart finished second, while Aiden Meister with Aiden Kenney took third place, followed by Brody Widlowski and Cooper Morris in fourth.

Club sponsors Mr. Leman and Mr. Unger expressed their appreciation for the players’ attitude during the tournament. “A huge thanks to all the teams who competed and made this a truly memorable event,” said Mr. Leman.

The club is considering another tournament in November, pending weather conditions, which could feature a match between the student champions and their teacher sponsors.

Coal City High School is part of Coal City Community Unit School District 1, which includes schools serving Grundy and Will counties such as Coal City Early Childhood Center, Coal City Elementary School, Coal City Intermediate School, Coal City Middle School, and Coal City High School itself (https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/). According to state data from 2020, the district spent $21,619 per student that year for a total expenditure of $47 million (https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/). The district’s teaching staff consists of 153 teachers with an average salary of $69,297; nearly 78 percent are women (https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/). Demographically, about 87 percent of students are White while roughly 10 percent are Hispanic (https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/).