Pickleball

tennis player feels the key to the game is staying loose.

“You’ve got to be able to move quickly,” said Nash, 55. “You’ve got to come to the net and have good reflexes. There are different ways to win. You can be a base-liner, or you can come in, and in pickleball you’ve got to come in.”

Nash, along with doubles teammate Mike Crosby, took top honors in the Men’s Doubles 4.0 and Above Division, sporting a 5-1 overall record, but it wasn’t easy.

“I thought the competition was pretty good,” said Nash. “I’ve played in other tournaments, and this one had some pretty good competition.”

Nori Isobe and Wayne Meyer worked their magic in the Men’s 3.0 and Under Division. Vince Dostillio and John King connected in the 4.0 and Under grouping. In the Women’s bracket Jenny Jelliffe and Heidi Mccune ruled the roost in the 3.0 and Under Division, while Yan Burdett and Stephanie Travers took home the title in the 4.0 and Above arena. In Mixed Doubles, Jim Acton and Mccune mastered the 3.0 and Above bracket. Cesar Hernandez and Travers triumphed in the 4.0 and Above group, while Ree Migliozzi and Kevin Laflamme leveled the competition in the 4.0 and Under universe.

For players like Castner, pickleball is more than just a sport, it’s something that has changed his quality of life.

“For me, I’m able to reinvent myself,” said Castner, 58, a retired IT tech. “I played college football. I’ve had a career. I retired this past July, and now I’m playing pickleball, so I’m reinventing myself as an athlete again. It kind of gives you a new purpose.”

Moving up to the advanced bracket for the first time, Castner didn’t make it to the finals, but is taking it all in stride. The Westford resident competed in his first national tournament in Hilton Head, S.C., making the podium following a marathon seven hours of intensive play.

“It was exhausting, but it was awesome,” said Castner, who is scheduled to play in another tournament this weekend in Hanover. “It’s really improved my life overall. It got me back into a good healthy state. I’ve won a lot of matches, so I’m on the podium now, which is nice.”

All that cardio has also paid dividends to the former gridiron giant, going from 307 pounds to 260 over that stretch.

“Now I’m healthier than I’ve ever been,” said Castner. “I’m off all my blood pressure medications, being old and overweight. It’s really kind of a cool thing that at 58, I’m able to do this year round.”

He also enjoys the added bragging rights he has over his son, Jake, who is a national championship wake boarder.

“My son’s always on a podium,” Castner said. “I’m like, ‘Hey, you’re not the only one on the podium anymore.’”

It’s been reported that 4.2 million people play pickleball at least once a year, roughly equal to the number of people that play ice hockey and lacrosse combined. And the numbers continue to climb.