Page 12 - IAV Digital Magazine #569

iAV - Antelope Valley Digital Magazine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W88VabQPcXo
Boston.com. Police said they did not observe any other related acts in the area and are currently investigating a motive.
“We don’t have enough informa- tion to determine if this was a ran- dom act of van- dalism or a target- ed event,” Needham Police Deputy Chief Chris Baker told Boston.com.
Several pickleball players told WBZ- TV that a verbal altercation with tennis players about sharing the courts took place over the week- end. Players also reported nets were tossed out of the courts dur-
ing a high school girls’ tennis match Monday after- noon.
The superintend- ent of Needham schools is investi- gating the latter incident, telling WBZ that the office is looking into “unaccept- able adult behav- ior.”
The conflict comes as pickle- ball experiences a boom of populari- ty in Needham — and nationwide. One Facebook group, with a mis- sion of “meeting new people, building communi- ty and growing the game in Needham,” has gained close to 1,100 members in the past year.
By Clara McCourt
Needham is experiencing some tennis ten- sion. An act of vandalism at the town’s courts
comes
amid a series of disputes between tennis and pickle- ball enthusiasts — but neither players nor police know if there’s a connection
between the two.
The Needham Police Department responded to Mills Field Courts
on
Hampton Avenue Monday morning, finding “four (pick- leball) nets cut diagonally and destroyed,” authorities told
iAV - Antelope Valley Digital Magazine
Vandalism Marks Possible Escalation of Tennis Vs.
Pickleball Tensions In Needham