Top 3 overall storylines in St. Louis:

• Will the Shock get revenge on their home court in the rematch with the Flash (Dallas beat St. Louis to win the Edward Jones MLP Mid-Season Tournament in Grand Rapids)?

• Will any trades shake up rosters for this event (and the balance of the year) with the deadline Wednesday, July 16 at 10pm Eastern?

• Will the Columbus Sliders or the Brooklyn Pickleball Team end up higher in the standings as this is both teams’ last event (and their last match is a head-to-head showdown)?

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Storylines per Premier team participating in St. Louis:

Atlanta Bouncers (4 wins, 11 losses, 12 standings points, 13^th place in points/match): Can the Bouncers make one final push for the playoffs or will they get thrown out of the club and the playoffs?

Brooklyn Pickleball Team (14 wins, 5 losses, 44 points, 4^th place): After a couple of tough losses at the Mid-Season Tournament (quarters to Sliders and back draw to 5s), can Brooklyn find one last push without their full roster (Dekel Bar likely out again in St. Louis)? And who will be in the lineup? 

Chicago Slice (4-10, 14 points, 10^th place): Barely hanging onto the last playoff spot, will this team be able to find some points within a vicious schedule that includes matches against the Shock, Flash, Sliders, and two against Brooklyn? Or will this Slice get burned in the kitchen?

Columbus Sliders (15-5, 45 points, 5^th place): The Sliders lost their last two matches in Grand Rapids (semis to Flash and back draw to Ranchers) and head to St. Louis for their last regular season event of the year. Can they re-find their mojo and chemistry to be a huge threat in the playoffs?

Dallas Flash (14-0, 46 points, 1^st place): Will the unparalleled consistency and dominance of this team continue, or will there be a letdown after winning an emotional final vs. the Shock in Grand Rapids? With the 6 points added to their tally from their mid-season tournament victory, their points per match now sits above 3 at a preposterous 3.29. 

St. Louis Shock (13-1, 43 points, 2^nd place): Will home cooking be exactly what this team needs to make a run at 1^st place in the standings? Currently 3 points behind the Flash, they must win the head-to-head showdown (and ideally without a DreamBreaker) to close the gap. They were awarded 4 points for finishing 2^nd in Grand Rapids, so their points per match also sits above 3 at 3.07 – pushing the 5s farther into the rear view in 3^rd.

10 Premier teams not playing in St. Louis:

Carolina Hogs, LA Mad Drops, Miami Pickleball Club, New Jersey 5s, NY Hustlers, Orlando Squeeze, Phoenix Flames, SoCal Hard 8s, Texas Ranchers, and Utah Black Diamonds.  

All 6 Challenger teams will be competing – Top 2 storylines:

• The Challenger Final in Grand Rapids was electric as the Las Vegas Night Owls' BB (Brooke Buckner) sent a blistering forehand down the line to clinch the title over the Nashville Chefs in a thrilling DreamBreaker. Who will win their rematch this week?

• Will a Challenger player get traded up to Premier in a trade like the Mari Humberg for Christa Gecheva transaction in June between the 5s and DC?

Marquee matchups:

• Saturday, July 19th @ 5:15pm Central: St. Louis Shock vs. Dallas Flash: The rematch gets the deserved PrimeTime spot and the hometown crowd will be buzzing. 

• Sunday, July 20th @ 2:30pm Central: Brooklyn Pickleball Team vs. Columbus Sliders: Can Brooklyn get revenge after dropping a quarterfinal in Grand Rapids at the Mid-Season Tournament in both teams’ final match of the regular season?

Location/times:

• Chaifetz Arena, 1 S. Compton Ave. St. Louis, MO

• Play on Championship Court starts at noon Central on Thursday, July 17^th, 11:30am Central on Friday July 18^th, noon Central on Saturday, July 19^th and 11am Central on Sunday, July 20^th. 

• Catch the action on Pickleballtv. ESPN2 live at 11am Central on Sunday for St. Louis vs. Brooklyn.