After finishing as runners-up in back-to-back seasons, the New Jersey Fives won their first-ever season-long championship title in 2026. Anna Leigh Waters, the best woman to ever play the game, also earned her first Major League Pickleball (MLP) title.
The Fives begin each year with the hopes of winning a championship - they are co-owned by Gary Vaynerchuk and Ryan Harwood, who also acts as General Manager. They have the best woman in the world on their roster in Anna Leigh Waters. This year, the expectations were the same - win it all or bust, especially after paying $800,000 in the draft for Jorja Johnson, one of the best women in the world.
The regular season started off a little shaky, with the Fives finishing in fourth in the MLP Dallas event. Since then? They finished first, first, first, second, and first. They earned the #1 overall seed headed into the playoffs, and that is super important in Major League Pickleball (MLP). The Fives secured “home court” advantage throughout the playoffs and more importantly, got to choose their opponent in the quarterfinals and semifinals.
The Fives have been here before (in fact they have been here in each of the past two years): In 2024, they faced off against the Dallas Flash and won the first match in a Dreambreaker, and then lost the other two matches. In 2025, more of the same - they beat the Columbus Sliders in a Dreambreaker in the first match of the finals, only to lose two in a row, again.
2026 is the year that the Fives got the monkey off their backs and they won it all. Let’s take a look and see how they did it.
The Finals versus the St. Louis Shock
The Fives and the Shock were the preseason favorites headed into the season - and why not? The Shock spent $1.23 million on Anna Bright in the draft and the Fives spent $800k on Jorja Johnson.
Erik Tice
It felt inevitable these two juggernauts would face off against each other in the finals.
Match #1 - Saturday 1pm
The St. Louis Shock came out on fire, demolishing the Fives women in the first game. Kate Fahey and Anna Bright were aggressive and never took their foot off the pedal. They beat the #1 overall women’s team in all of MLP, Jorja Johnson and Anna Leigh Waters, 11-2. The Fives men jumped out to an 8-2 lead, but Hayden Patriquin and Gabe Tardio completely flipped the game, winning nine consecutive points for an 11-8 victory.
The Fives came alive in mixed doubles, winning 11-4, 11-8 with all four of their mixed doubles players playing lights out. Headed to the Dreambreaker, the Fives had the momentum.
In the Dreambreaker, the Shock went up 14-10 after Gabe Tardio went 4-0 over Will Howells in their second rotation. From there, the Fives went 12-6, with Anna Leigh Waters winning the last two points over Kate Fahey at 20-20, to earn the 22-20 victory.
Match #2 - Sunday 11:30am
My, how the tables have turned. On Saturday, the Shock won both gender doubles games. Sunday? The Fives pulled out the UNO reverse card - they won 11-9, 12-10.
In mixed, Anna and Hayden got off to a 6-0 start at the side switch, and were up 7-1 at one point. Anna Leigh and Noe then started clawing back, cutting the deficit to 8-5 before Anna and Hayden closed it out, 11-6. Kate and Gabe used that momentum, and won 11-9.
The Fives controlled the Dreambreaker from start to finish, cruising to a 21-9 win.
|
2026 - A season to remember for New Jersey
The Fives earned a title with two newcomers this year, in Jorja Johnson and Federico Staksrud. Alongside Anna Leigh Waters, Jorja Johnson helped form the best women's doubles pairing in MLP this season.
Anna Leigh was finally able to win the biggest title in MLP and now she has won every possible trophy in the world, including regular season MVP this year.
For the guys, Howells and Khlif stepped up big time in the playoffs and especially the finals. They both played great and honestly their stock is rising from their respective performances. However, I would be remiss if I didn't mention the late season acquisition of Federico Staksrud. The Argentinian brought a ton of poise in stressful moments while also bringing a ton of positive energy for the Fives. His impact went well beyond his individual results, and he was as instrumental in New Jersey's championship run as anyone on the roster.
In fact, he was named the Finals MVP for his great play all weekend long, helping the franchise lift the trophy for the first time.
With salary-cap and salary-floor rules swirling ahead of the 2027 season, the future may look different for New Jersey. But after back-to-back runner-up finishes, the Fives finally have what they spent three seasons chasing: an MLP championship.
Credit to the St. Louis Shock
While the Shock came up just short this year, they fought hard the entire way. They paid $1.23 million for Anna Bright to bring her back and keep the core together for a third straight year. They made a mid-season trade to pick up Hunter Johnson, one of the top singles players on tour.
The Shock really dominated a lot of their opponents throughout the year, and many pundits (myself included) had them as the most well-rounded team this year, with no obvious weak spot.
While they came up short of their ultimate goal, the St. Louis Shock should hold their heads high for having a remarkable 2026 MLP season.
How They Got Here: A Semifinal Recap
Dallas Flash vs. St. Louis Shock
The Dallas Flash had to win the first round of the playoffs in Dallas, and then had to follow that up in the quarterfinals by beating Ben Johns and the LA Mad Drops. The Flash did exactly that, beating the Las Vegas Night Owls 3-1, 3-0 in Dallas. In Newport Beach against the LA Mad Drops, the Flash battled to a victory, winning in a Dreambreaker and winning 3-1 after losing the first match to the Mad Drops 1-3.
The Shock beat the Texas Ranchers in the quarters, 3-0, 3-0 and were in control from start to finish.
This series of the semifinals was played at noon on Friday and then again at 3pm on Friday.
Match #1 Result:
Match #2 Result:
The Shock overpowered the Flash, with the Dallas men providing the only bright spot for the Flash. St. Louis was undefeated in both women’s doubles and mixed doubles to make the finals.
Brooklyn Pickleball Team vs. New Jersey Fives
Brooklyn had a similar task to Dallas, in that they also had to play in the first round of the playoffs. They beat the SoCal Hard 8s in the first round, 3-2, 3-1. In the quarters as the #5 seed, they played against #4 seed, Columbus Sliders, last year's defending champions. They beat the Sliders 3-2, 3-2, 3-1 to make it to New York.
The New Jersey Fives beat the Palm Beach Royals 3-2, 3-1 in the quarters to make the semis.
Match #1 Result:
Match #2 Result:
The Fives were in control from start to finish this weekend. On Friday, they won 3-0, with a point total of 33-16. On Saturday morning, they brought more of the same energy, winning 3-0, and 33-13.
Love Pickleball? Join 100k+ readers for free weekly tips, news & gear deals.
Subscribe to The Dink
