Pickleball community mourns fellow players killed in Texas plane crash | AP News

Five members of a pickleball club who died after the small plane carrying them crashed in Texas are being mourned by a tight-knit community of fellow players.The Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed Saturday that Justin Appling, Hayden Dillard, Brooke Skypala, Stacy Hedrick and Seren Wilson were on board the Cessna 421C that crashed Thursday night in Texas Hill Country. Appling was the pilot. The aircraft had departed from Amarillo and was heading to New Braunfels National Airport. It crash-landed in Wimberley, a city about 40 miles (64 kilometers) southwest of Austin, the Texas Department of Public Safety said. The Amarillo Pickleball Club posted on its social media that the victims were members on their way to a pickleball tournament in New Braunfels. Teammates who became more like familyDillard and Appling, who went by the nickname Glen, were the owners of a manufactured home dealer in Amarillo. The business announced early Friday that it would be closed until Monday.Sarah Lister got to know Dillard and Appling during pickleball tournaments and described them as both genuine people. She said Appling was always making them laugh and Dillard was an amazing businesswoman and mother.She said Dillard has two daughters, one of whom