photo by: Contributed

Kids play on an open field while parents watch from the sidelines at the A-Team Sports Facility, 4000 W 6th St.

While west Lawrence lost a space to shop for groceries when the Hy-Vee store near Sixth and Monterey Way closed in 2019, nearly five years later the big space has helped Lawrence enter the world of major, private sports facilities for youths and adults alike.

Or, put another way, you can’t get pickles there anymore, but you can play pickleball.

The facility at 4000 W. Sixth St. is home to a lot of things — sports simulators, batting cages, a pickleball court, a bar and cafe, and a gym — but more than anything it is a place where kids and adults can advance in their sport or overall physical fitness, said A-Team Sports owner Alan Rector.

“We’re trying to instill this in not only players but parents too, and make sure that they know that at this age, it’s not about wins and losses, it’s really about developing for the next level,” Rector said.

The business occupies the back and western end of the building, which is largely occupied by Velocity Church, which bought the building after the Hy-Vee closing.

Rector said the name A-Team actually comes from his and his wife’s names, Alan and Andrea, not the once popular action-adventure TV show featuring Mr. T and his mohawk. Rector was a youthful fan of the show, though, and he continues to be all in on fun for kids.

Rector’s vision for the facility began as a place where kids, like his own two daughters, could train on the same high-tech equipment at the same high-performance level that kids in neighboring cities do, as the Journal-World reported.

Since opening, that vision has grown to include kids in every walk of life with or without ambitions to play sports, he said.

“A lot of these kids don’t play sports, but they just get in here and they’re active twice a week, getting the blood flowing, and getting their strength up and just being more healthy,” Rector said.

photo by: Chris Conde/Journal-World

Alan Rector prepares to load a softball into a pitching machine on May 29, 2025, at the A-Team Sports Facility, 4000 W. Sixth St.

The A-Team facility is home to 14 trainers in various sports, many trained as physical therapists who work with kids as young as six years old.

One of the facility’s programs, the acceleration program, is an eight-week course that helps determine at what level and intensity a kid should be training. Since the program is run by a trained physical therapist, it can also help identify other issues holding a kid back, Rector said.

“(The trainer) will check their joint mobility. And you know, if kids are pigeon-toed, for instance, it might not be for one reason or another, but it might just be that their ankles are really tight. So she’ll come up with different programs or different exercises for fixing those or helping correct their gaits,” Rector said.

The facility is full of activities for kids. To kick off summer this year, the facility hosted a party with bounce houses, food and games that hundreds of kids attended, Rector said. He said he hopes the facility can do what parents today often struggle to do — get their kids off their phones.

“I feel like for a lot of the younger-age kids, it’s hard for them to make phone calls and it’s hard for them to just interact and make eye contact, because of these smartphones,” Rector said.

photo by: Contributed

Kids play pickleball at the A-Team Sports Facility, 4000 W. Sixth St.

He said that goal is carried out not only in the activities the kids do at the facility, but also with the 19 baseball and softball teams that A-Team Sports trains for recreation leagues throughout the area under the separate nonprofit entity, A Team Aces Youth Sports Association.

To participate in the area leagues, the teams and the players usually have to pay a fee, especially as the number of tournaments grows. To avoid making parents pay out of pocket for those costs, the Aces hold regular fundraisers. Rector said a common fundraiser is a raffle which requires selling tickets. He said he encourages his players to get out there and sell tickets the old-fashioned way, face to face.

He said for some kids, the fundraisers aren’t enough and the Aces still has a scholarship program to help several kids out each year.

“We don’t want any kids sitting on the sideline because of money. We don’t want them sitting on the sideline regardless,” Rector said.

He said that it was never his intention to create so many teams, but after more than 300 kids showed up for tryouts, it seemed like the only option.

photo by: Contributed

Visitors practice in the batting cages at the A-Team Sports Facility, 4000 W. Sixth St.

“There’s definitely a need for it,” Rector said.

The facility is not just for kids, though. There are plenty of opportunities for adults to come and play too.

“We can rent this out for corporate events as well. We kind of close the curtains, make it more secluded, and people come in from three to five with their businesses, bring the employees and have a little bit of fun,” Rector said.

The facility has several options for golfers to practice their swing, including two state-of-the-art Full Swing simulators. A-Team also offers the option of having lessons with professional golfer and instructor Rob Nicholson.

The simulators also include a full suite of other games that can improve a person’s dexterity and skill. One game in particular is a fan favorite, Rector said: “Zombie Dodgeball.”

photo by: Contributed

A player prepares to throw a dodgeball in a “Zombie Dodgeball” simulator game at the A-Team Sports Facility, 4000 W. Sixth St.

“They’re in there breaking a sweat, throwing dodgeballs at the screen. It’s fun, but they’re active. It’s the best of both worlds. This gets them video games plus being active. Movement matters, so trying to keep them active and get them the mindset at a young age is important,” Rector said.

A-Team Sports promotes its programs, open-play days and special events on Facebook and Instagram. Its website, a-teamsports.com, has profiles of each of its trainers and lets visitors schedule a workout, birthday party or other event.

Rector said overall, he wants the community to know that there is a local place they can go where kids of all skill levels and interests can gather and share in the fun.

“Our main goal is to provide for our youth and our community, but grow and expand into a facility that we can have all sports. Basketball, volleyball, baseball and softball, soccer and everything else that we can provide,” Rector said.

photo by: Contributed

A golfer tees up before a swing on a golf simulator at the A-Team Sports Facility, 4000 W. Sixth St.

photo by: Chris Conde/Journal-World

The gym at the A-Team Sports Facility, 4000 W. Sixth St., is pictured on May 29, 2025.