Champions! New Jersey 5s Crowned 2026 MLP Champions After a Nail-Biting Sunday in Central Park
The Fives close out the league's most consistent season with a 21-9 Dreambreaker win over St. Louis Shock
Article
After sealing the first win of the Final on Saturday in a Dreambreaker that already had everyone on edge, New Jersey 5s returned to Central Park today with the job of closing out the series against a St. Louis Shock team that had no intention of giving anything away. It was anything but easy. The most consistent team of the 2026 season had to earn it point by point, right down to the very last breath.
Sunday kicked off with the broadcast jumping from PickleballTV to CBS — a bit of a clunky transition for those of us following along from home — but once the ball was in play, nobody remembered that.
LOVE PICKLEBALL?
Get Dink Authority Magazine updates, new editions, pro stories and event alerts.
We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe anytime.
The day's first match, women's doubles, set the tone for everything that followed: Anna Leigh Waters and Jorja Johnson faced off against Kate Fahey and Anna Bright, carrying the weight of being the ones to open the court for both teams. You could feel the tension of wanting to start strong. Endless rallies from end to end, smashes that had the crowd buzzing, balls clipping the very edge of the net that pulled gasps from the stands. The match stayed tight through several stretches, but in the end the 5s women pulled it out, 11-9.
With that lead in hand, it was time for men's doubles — Federico Staksrud and Will Howells against Hayden Patriquin and Gabe Tardio — and this one had real tension to it. The St. Louis Shock mounted a comeback that leveled the score at 7-7, and from there it was a back-and-forth that gave nobody a moment's rest: nerves, anxiety, and plenty of energy on the court, unexpected shots, fantastic plays, even a timeout from the 5s' coach to sharpen details in the middle of the storm. The nerves got to Federico for a moment, leaving a long dink in the net to put St. Louis up 10-7. The match stayed tight — 8-10, 9-10, 10-10 — with the Shock going for their third match point and coming up short. Patriquin rushed a ball to the net and sent it out for 10-10, and Federico answered with a cut drive that Patriquin couldn't return, 11-10 for the 5s. The crowd, fully fired up by now with the 5s' fan section cheering nonstop, watched a brutal exchange of shots until Howells came up with unreturnable balls to the body that shut down St. Louis' push. In the decisive moment, serving, an aggressive rally broke out and Federico, ice in his veins, closed it with a smash to give the 5s the win — the exact revenge against the same rivals who had already fallen to New Jersey's experience in an earlier meeting. Day's series 2-0 for the 5s.
The day's first mixed doubles match went to Noé Khlif and Anna Leigh Waters against Anna Bright and Hayden Patriquin. A match loaded with emotional weight — nerves, anxiety, so much on the line — with Noé and Anna pulling incredible balls out from the back of the court, but falling this time to a solid, aggressive St. Louis side. The day's series moved to 2-1. Worth remembering: in earlier rounds it had been this exact pairing, Noé and Waters, who had gotten the better of these same St. Louis opponents — today it was simply their turn to come out on top.
With the responsibility of closing out or extending the series came the second mixed match: Kate Fahey and Gabe Tardio against Jorja Johnson and Federico Staksrud. The 5s came out firing, 4-1, with Jorja solid and Federico just as sharp, but the anxiety had already settled into the court — here, whoever handles it wins. A long rally ended in a foot fault called against Federico after a smash, in a point where nobody wanted to take the risk. But Jorja answered with a gutsy winning volley to make it 5-3, and the 5s went into the break up 6-3, with a crowd visibly moved by the effort these athletes were putting in. Coming back out, Jorja put on the red jersey and Federico, pushing with everything he had, landed a serious smash and a reduction volley to take back the serve — nobody was giving anything away here. But St. Louis wasn't backing down either: they pulled ahead 9-8 serving with everything, and on a confusing play Federico crossed into Jorja's space, who didn't read it, and they lost the point — 10-8 St. Louis. The 5s regrouped and shut down the push to win back the serve, falling 9-10, but Kate and Tardio stayed right there, relentless, with game point in St. Louis' favor. After a long dink over the kitchen line, the Shock took the match and tied the day's series at 2-2.
Everything came down to the Dreambreaker, race to 21.
The round opened with Federico leaving it at 2-2. Howells came in against Tardio and ran off three straight points. Then it was Waters' turn against Kate: she took control and left it 7-3. Bright's turn against Jorja, and Jorja did it again — phenomenal, forcing an unforced error from Bright on the return to make it 10-6 at the net. Side change with the 5s up 11-6. Federico came back in against Johnson and delivered a perfect run: four points that left the score 14-6. Tardio faced Howells, looking nervous but full of offensive power, and left it 16-8. Waters' turn again against Kate: a line shot down the sideline had the crowd buzzing, then she left one in the net after taking Kate's offense, but then, in a baseline exchange, she put two straight balls to Kate's backhand that left her out of position — 19-9. Final turn: Jorja against Bright. Jorja won the first point for 20-9, served again, and Anna Bright's return went out.
21-9. MLP Champions: The Fives.
Well deserved. New Jersey 5s closes out the 2026 season as the most consistent team in the entire league, and they do it the only way that felt right — fighting for every point, every game, every Dreambreaker, with nobody giving them a single thing for free.
Congratulations, champions!
The Fives close out the league's most consistent season with a 21-9 Dreambreaker win over St. Louis Shock
Article
After sealing the first win of the Final on Saturday in a Dreambreaker that already had everyone on edge, New Jersey 5s returned to Central Park today with the job of closing out the series against a St. Louis Shock team that had no intention of giving anything away. It was anything but easy. The most consistent team of the 2026 season had to earn it point by point, right down to the very last breath.
Current Issue
Danni-Elle Townsend: Ella No Está Aquí para Pedir Permiso. Está Aquí para Llevárselo Todo
Read Now →
Sunday kicked off with the broadcast jumping from PickleballTV to CBS — a bit of a clunky transition for those of us following along from home — but once the ball was in play, nobody remembered that.
LOVE PICKLEBALL?
Get Dink Authority Magazine updates, new editions, pro stories and event alerts.
We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe anytime.
The day's first match, women's doubles, set the tone for everything that followed: Anna Leigh Waters and Jorja Johnson faced off against Kate Fahey and Anna Bright, carrying the weight of being the ones to open the court for both teams. You could feel the tension of wanting to start strong. Endless rallies from end to end, smashes that had the crowd buzzing, balls clipping the very edge of the net that pulled gasps from the stands. The match stayed tight through several stretches, but in the end the 5s women pulled it out, 11-9.
With that lead in hand, it was time for men's doubles — Federico Staksrud and Will Howells against Hayden Patriquin and Gabe Tardio — and this one had real tension to it. The St. Louis Shock mounted a comeback that leveled the score at 7-7, and from there it was a back-and-forth that gave nobody a moment's rest: nerves, anxiety, and plenty of energy on the court, unexpected shots, fantastic plays, even a timeout from the 5s' coach to sharpen details in the middle of the storm. The nerves got to Federico for a moment, leaving a long dink in the net to put St. Louis up 10-7. The match stayed tight — 8-10, 9-10, 10-10 — with the Shock going for their third match point and coming up short. Patriquin rushed a ball to the net and sent it out for 10-10, and Federico answered with a cut drive that Patriquin couldn't return, 11-10 for the 5s. The crowd, fully fired up by now with the 5s' fan section cheering nonstop, watched a brutal exchange of shots until Howells came up with unreturnable balls to the body that shut down St. Louis' push. In the decisive moment, serving, an aggressive rally broke out and Federico, ice in his veins, closed it with a smash to give the 5s the win — the exact revenge against the same rivals who had already fallen to New Jersey's experience in an earlier meeting. Day's series 2-0 for the 5s.
The day's first mixed doubles match went to Noé Khlif and Anna Leigh Waters against Anna Bright and Hayden Patriquin. A match loaded with emotional weight — nerves, anxiety, so much on the line — with Noé and Anna pulling incredible balls out from the back of the court, but falling this time to a solid, aggressive St. Louis side. The day's series moved to 2-1. Worth remembering: in earlier rounds it had been this exact pairing, Noé and Waters, who had gotten the better of these same St. Louis opponents — today it was simply their turn to come out on top.
With the responsibility of closing out or extending the series came the second mixed match: Kate Fahey and Gabe Tardio against Jorja Johnson and Federico Staksrud. The 5s came out firing, 4-1, with Jorja solid and Federico just as sharp, but the anxiety had already settled into the court — here, whoever handles it wins. A long rally ended in a foot fault called against Federico after a smash, in a point where nobody wanted to take the risk. But Jorja answered with a gutsy winning volley to make it 5-3, and the 5s went into the break up 6-3, with a crowd visibly moved by the effort these athletes were putting in. Coming back out, Jorja put on the red jersey and Federico, pushing with everything he had, landed a serious smash and a reduction volley to take back the serve — nobody was giving anything away here. But St. Louis wasn't backing down either: they pulled ahead 9-8 serving with everything, and on a confusing play Federico crossed into Jorja's space, who didn't read it, and they lost the point — 10-8 St. Louis. The 5s regrouped and shut down the push to win back the serve, falling 9-10, but Kate and Tardio stayed right there, relentless, with game point in St. Louis' favor. After a long dink over the kitchen line, the Shock took the match and tied the day's series at 2-2.
Everything came down to the Dreambreaker, race to 21.
The round opened with Federico leaving it at 2-2. Howells came in against Tardio and ran off three straight points. Then it was Waters' turn against Kate: she took control and left it 7-3. Bright's turn against Jorja, and Jorja did it again — phenomenal, forcing an unforced error from Bright on the return to make it 10-6 at the net. Side change with the 5s up 11-6. Federico came back in against Johnson and delivered a perfect run: four points that left the score 14-6. Tardio faced Howells, looking nervous but full of offensive power, and left it 16-8. Waters' turn again against Kate: a line shot down the sideline had the crowd buzzing, then she left one in the net after taking Kate's offense, but then, in a baseline exchange, she put two straight balls to Kate's backhand that left her out of position — 19-9. Final turn: Jorja against Bright. Jorja won the first point for 20-9, served again, and Anna Bright's return went out.
21-9. MLP Champions: The Fives.
Well deserved. New Jersey 5s closes out the 2026 season as the most consistent team in the entire league, and they do it the only way that felt right — fighting for every point, every game, every Dreambreaker, with nobody giving them a single thing for free.
Congratulations, champions!
