The badminton team took a devastating loss, losing 21-9 against the Westmoor Rams on Thursday afternoon.
After the two teams finished their lineup calls, the Bears, full of enthusiasm and hope, started their matches. First seed mixed doubles junior Kylie Lam and sophomore Colin Chien came off the court losing the first set 21-17 and the second set 23-21. They had consistent and good rallies as well as coordination, but it was not enough to stop the Rams’ onslaught of smashes and aggressive plays. Second seed boys doubles sophomore Jordan Lee and junior Dylan Chou met a similar fate, getting destroyed 21-8, 21-10 due to Westmoor’s superior drop shots.
Second seeded girls doubles senior Jenna Lee* and Annika(Kyoto) Furukawa had a close match, playing with excellent placement and drop shots. Still, the Rams’ defense stayed solid, closing the game with a loss of 21-17 and 23-21 for M-A. Third seeded girls singles Gloria Dal Busco, despite her good eye and smart decision-making, was outmatched by her opponent’s aggressive and powerful plays. The game ended quickly, resulting in another loss for the Bears, 21-9, 21-16.
On the boys singles side, second seeded freshman Joshua Luo conceded 21-13, 21-10. Despite his good fakes and amazing drop shots, the Rams stepped up both offensively and defensively, causing all attempts by Luo to be shut down. Third seeded boys singles freshman Caleb Chen also ended up losing with a final score of 21-12, 21-13.
Even with a rocky start for M-A, second seeded junior Kaya Lam came out focused, utilizing dropshots and smashes to win her game 21-12, 22-20
“I was pretty down because I was just getting lazy,” Lam said. “But I was thinking, hey, I kind of don’t want to play [a] third set, so I locked in.”
Still, the energy from Lam’s victory was short-lived as the Rams pushed back, beating first seeded boys singles sophomore Jack Trevor 21-9 and 21-6. First seeded boys doubles freshman Alexander Erlebacher and sophomore Elliot Chi faced similar challenges, and ultimately lost 21-8, 21-6.
First seeded girls doubles sophomore Yimeng Cai* and junior Amy Tram, however, dominated the field. The duo utilized precision dropshots and powerful smashes, giving no chance for the opponents to even react, and the Bears were able to easily clean a win 21-13 and 21-8. That momentum carried on, allowing third seeded boys doubles sophomores Thomas Nelson and Haruki Uenaka to pull out a narrow win in a three-set battle, 21-17, 16-21, and 21-15.
“I hit it hard, and I hit it over the net,” Nelson said. “Haruki made some big plays out there as well. Energy was up and I’ll probably be able to get more play time due to this win.”
The mixed doubles didn’t have much success, with second seed seniors Adam Erlebacher and Viet-Tran Do losing 21-9, 21-12 due to their opponents’ superb smashes. In a tight match, third seed seniors Nick Chan and Olivia Tantisira fell short, losing 21-18, 8-21, and 21-18.
The Bears didn’t give up, and tried to take the girls doubles third seed game with freshman Alexander Tong and sophomore Khanya Ntwa. However, they were outmatched by the Rams, and they quickly conceded 21-12 and 23-21.
First seed girls singles bounced back, though sophomore Stella Huang swiftly and skillfully dominated her opponent. Using her tactical playstyle of consistent yet powerful shots, Huang gained confidence shot after shot, snowballing a series of points to win the game 21-9, 21-5.
“I noticed that none of her shots seemed really strong. So my strategy was to just hit to her backhand,” Huang said. “I then forced her to hit some really bad drop shots and just smash the birdie.”
The Bears will travel to face the Burlingame Panthers on Tuesday, April 21 at 4 p.m.
*Jenna Lee and Yimeng Cai are journalists for the M-A Chronicle.
