LIVE BLOG: The latest news and updates from MLP Columbus
The 2025 Major League Pickleball season continues this week at MLP Columbus presented by The James at Ohio State, where nine Premier level teams will be in action across four days at Pickle & Chill.
This is the second of ten regular season events that will take place between April and August, and each team will play a total of 25 matches during the regular season before the playoffs.
Broadcast coverage will be available on the Pickleballtv app, which is available for download in the Apple and Android app stores, starting at 2pm ET.
Stay tuned for live updates throughout the day.
8:05pm ET: Squeeze end Sliders’ winning streak with clean sweep
The Orlando Squeeze (6-1, 17pts) closed out Friday’s action at Pickle & Chill with a sweep of the Columbus Sliders (6-3, 17 pts).
To start off the contest, Lacy Schneemann/Samantha Parker overcame a 4-9 deficit to upset Parris Todd/Lea Jansen and steal the women’s doubles point for Orlando.
That set the tone for the rest of the match, as the Squeeze put together their best performance of the season so far to end the Sliders’ six-match winning streak.
This is a massively impressive result for the Squeeze, who have now won three matches in a row.
Federico Staksrud spoke about what it took to get the win in front of a rowdy Columbus crowd.
“I said to the team before we started that it was going to take a lot of personality and a lot of character to win this match, especially since we were playing against the home crowd,” he mentioned. “Every time we would make a mistake, every time we would lose a point, we knew they were going to be cheering. We just had to have a lot of character and personality and stay positive and stay together as a team.”
That’s what they did, and it sure worked out on Friday night.
Orlando will be back in action on Saturday with matches against the Atlanta Bouncers and St. Louis Shock on deck.
6:00pm ET: Hustlers outlast Flames in thrilling DreamBreaker for first win
On Thursday, the Phoenix Flames secured their first victory of the year in a DreamBreaker.
On Friday, that privilege belonged to the New York Hustlers.
The squad featuring Zane Ford, Donald Young, Dominique Schaefer, and Helena Spiridis triumphed in a thriller to get into the ‘win’ column for the first time this season.
Ford picked up wins in both men’s doubles and mixed doubles to help the Hustlers force a DreamBreaker.
The ensuing singles contest was a tightly contested, back-and-forth affair.
It looked like the Flames would take it when Jack Sock gave them a 19-16 lead, but the combination of Ford and Schaefer went on to save two match points to even the score before Spiridis closed things out against Jessie Irvine for an ending score line of 24-22.
Both teams will be in action on Saturday at Pickle & Chill.
New York will look to build on Friday’s triumph when they face the Columbus Sliders, while Phoenix will look to rebound against the Miami Pickleball Club.
5:35pm ET: Slice slay Bouncers for first win of 2025
The Chicago Slice (1-3, 3pts) picked up their first victory of the season with a 3-1 triumph over the Atlanta Bouncers (2-4, 6pts).
The Slice came out on fire and dominated both gender doubles matchups; Callie Smith/Vivienne David defeated Vivian Glozman/Victoria DiMuzio 11-3 in women’s doubles, while James Ignatowich/Max Freeman dispatched Jaume Martinez Vich/Todd Fought 11-2 in the men’s match.
Glozman/Martinez Vich did take the first mixed doubles bout for Atlanta, but David/Ignatowich were able to take the second to seal the win.
Chicago had no players that were eligible to be kept from the 2024 season, so they built their entire roster from March’s free agency draft.
They took Freeman No. 10 overall, even though he had no prior MLP experience.
The former Vanderbilt Commodore (and James Ignatowich’s college tennis teammate) is enjoying the ride so far and looking to make the most of the opportunity.
“That was a shocker to me, to be honest,” Freeman recalled of learning that he was drafted at No. 10. “It’s definitely taking a big risk on a rookie, but I’m very lucky to play with my good friend James. It also bodes well for me as a rookie that I have three experienced players on my team. I’m definitely learning from them every step of the way, and I think we’re getting better as time goes on.”
Both teams will be back in action on Saturday, with Chicago set to face the Carolina Hogs and Atlanta scheduled to play the Orlando Squeeze.
5:25pm ET: Orlando Squeeze (A) v. Columbus Sliders (H): Pre-Match Notes
The Orlando Squeeze (5-1, 14pts) will battle the Columbus Sliders (6-2, 17pts) in the final match of the day on Toray Championship Court.
Orlando is fresh off a clean sweep of the Carolina Hogs and will be looking to win its third straight match.
The Sliders are on a winning streak of their own, having triumphed in their past six matches. They will be bolstered by the expected return of CJ Klinger, who was forced to miss the team’s first two matches this week with the flu.
If Klinger can’t go, then Roscoe Bellamy will continue filling in for Columbus.
Here are the individual matchups for the contest:
- WD: Lacy Schneemann/Samantha Parker (ORL) v. Parris Todd/Lea Jansen (COL)
- MD: Federico Staksrud/Dylan Frazier (ORL) v. Andrei Daescu/CJ Klinger (COL)
- MXD 1: Schneemann/Staksrud (ORL) v. Todd/Daescu (COL)
- MXD 2: Parker/Frazier (ORL) v. Jansen/Klinger (COL)
4:05pm ET: St. Louis, Orlando earn regulation victories
The St. Louis Shock (4-0, 11pts) and Orlando Squeeze (5-1, 14pts) each earned three standings points with impressive performances on Friday afternoon at Pickle & Chill.
The Shock dispatched the Miami Pickleball Club 3-1 in a performance that was bolstered by mixed doubles wins from the pairings of Kate Fahey/Gabe Tardio and Anna Bright/Hayden Patriquin.
Not to be outdone, the Squeeze swept the massively shorthanded Carolina Hogs, who were competing without Ben and Collin Johns.
Martin Emmrich and Ross Whittaker did a solid job filling in, but Orlando was able to close out all four matches to get off to winning start in Columbus.
Both teams’ next matches are against the Columbus Sliders, with Orlando playing the hometown team in Friday’s final bout and St. Louis doing the same on Saturday afternoon.
3:35pm ET: Chicago Slice (A) v. Atlanta Bouncers (H): Pre-Match Notes
The Chicago Slice (0-3, 0pts) will take on the Atlanta Bouncers (2-3, 6pts).
Chicago doesn’t have a win yet, but they have opened their season with matches against three of what are expected to be some of the top teams in 2025: the Dallas Flash, Texas Ranchers, and Columbus Sliders.
Atlanta is fresh off a regulation victory over the Carolina Hogs that ended a three-match losing streak.
Here are the individual matchups for the contest:
- WD: Vivienne David/Callie Smith (CHI) v. Vivian Glozman/Victoria DiMuzio (ATL)
- MD: James Ignatowich/Max Freeman (CHI) v. Jaume Martinez Vich/Todd Fought (ATL)
- MXD 1: Smith/Freeman (CHI) v. Glozman/Martinez Vich (ATL)
- MXD 2: David/Ignatowich (CHI) v. DiMuzio/Fought (ATL)
2:05pm ET: Columbus, Miami earn regulation victories
The Columbus Sliders (6-2, 17 pts) and Miami Pickleball Club (3-3, 7 pts) picked up regulation victories on Friday afternoon over the Chicago Slice and New York Hustlers, respectively.
Both teams went 2-0 in gender doubles before going 1-1 in mixed doubles to secure wins and three standings points.
Miami will next face the St. Louis Shock, while the Sliders will take on the Orlando Squeeze in Friday's final match.
1:15pm ET: Johns bros pull out of remaining matches
Ben and Collin Johns have pulled out of their remaining matches at MLP Columbus due to lighting concerns.
Read more about this developing story here.
12:25pm ET: New York Hustlers (A) v. Miami Pickleball Club (H): Pre-Match Notes
The New York Hustlers (0-2, 0pts) will face the Miami Pickleball Club (2-3, 4pts) in the day’s second match on Grandstand Court.
New York is looking for its first win of the season, while Miami is looking to end a three-match skid after starting the season 2-0.
One thing that might help the Hustlers is the addition of Dominique Schaefer, who missed the season-opening event in Orlando.
Here are the individual matchups for the contest:
- WD: Helena Spiridis/Dominique Schaefer (NY) v. Milan Rane/Mya Bui (MIA)
- MD: Zane Ford/Donald Young (NY) v. Noe Khlif/Jay Devilliers (MIA)
- MXD 1: Schaefer/Ford (NY) v. Bui/Devilliers (MIA)
- MXD 2: Spiridis/Young (NY) v. Rane/Khlif (MIA)
12:15pm ET: Bouncers stop skid, defeat Hogs in regulation
The Atlanta Bouncers stopped their three-match losing streak with a 3-1 victory over the Carolina Hogs.
Liz Truluck/Tamaryn Emmrich took the women's doubles point for Carolina, but Jaume Martinez Vich/Todd Fought picked up a big win over Ben Johns/Collin Johns in men's doubles to tie things up.
In mixed doubles, the pairings of Vivian Glozman/Martinez Vich and Victoria DiMuzio/Fought both picked up wins to help Atlanta secure the triumph and three standings points.
Both teams will be back in action on Friday, with the Hogs set to face the Orlando Squeeze and the Bouncers scheduled to take on the Chicago Slice.
11:45am ET: Columbus Sliders (A) v. Chicago Slice (H): Pre-Match Notes
The Columbus Sliders (5-2, 14 pts) will face the Chicago Slice (0-2, 0pts) in the first match on Toray Championship Court.
Columbus is riding a five-match win streak after a DreamBreaker triumph over the Phoenix Flames on Thursday.
The Sliders will again be without CJ Klinger, who is dealing with an illness. This means that Roscoe Bellamy will fill in for the second match in a row.
Chicago is looking for their first win of the season after falling to the Dallas Flash and Texas Ranchers in Orlando.
Here are the individual matchups for the contest:
- WD: Parris Todd/Lea Jansen (COL) v. Callie Smith/Vivienne David (CHI)
- MD: Andrei Daescu/Roscoe Bellamy (COL) v. James Ignatowich/Max Freeman (CHI)
- MXD 1: Jansen/Bellamy (COL) v. Smith/Freeman (CHI)
- MXD 2: Todd/Daescu (COL) v. David/Ignatowich (CHI)
10:55am ET: Carolina Hogs (A) v. Atlanta Bouncers (H): Pre-Match Notes
The Carolina Hogs (0-3, 1pt) will face the Atlanta Bouncers (1-3, 3pts) in the first match of the day at Pickle & Chill.
Carolina is looking for its first win after suffering a heartbreaking DreamBreaker defeat at the hands of the Phoenix Flames on Thursday.
On the other side of the net, Atlanta has lost three straight after opening their season with a win over the New York Hustlers.
Liz Truluck will again earn the start for Carolina and replace Kaitlyn Christian, who is out with a back injury.
Here are the individual matchups for the contest:
- WD: Liz Truluck/Tamaryn Emmrich (CAR) v. Vivian Glozman/Victoria DiMuzio (ATL)
- MD: Ben Johns/Collin Johns (CAR) v. Jaume Martinez Vich/Todd Fought (ATL)
- MXD 1: Emmrich/B. Johns (CAR) v. Glozman/Martinez Vich (ATL)
- MXD 2: Truluck/B. Johns (CAR) v. DiMuzio/Fought (ATL)
Friday's Order of Play released
Here is the Order of Play for the eight matches being played on Friday:
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