Varsity Badminton wins against Diamond Bar in the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) semifinals on May. 8, where they later lost against Arcadia in the CIF finals.
Walnut played 21 matches against Diamond Bar in total. The two schools tied (10-10) the last game, which was a mixed doubles match, which would give either Walnut or Diamond Bar the 11th point.
“It was crazy because the points were really close. We were all really nervous and we cheered a lot for our team and I could feel that we really wanted to win.” senior Kristy Ge said.
Varsity captains junior Kendra Wu and sophomore Jaxton Zhang were placed in the last round where they would win a tiebreaker, moving Walnut High School up to CIF finals. During the deciding match, in which one team would have to win two out of three sets, the first set was lost. In the second set, Diamond Bar took the lead at first, but Mustangs won in the end.
“I’m thankful the coach had confidence and trusted me enough to place me in the last match. Even though I was nervous, luckily I was able to handle the pressure. The points were really close but I knew I could trust my partner, Kendra, [and] having all the team members cheering for us was encouraging. It felt really good to win.” Zhang said.
The third set was an especially close game with both teams tying at (20-20) and again at (21-21) where Wu and Zhang played in the deuce to break the tie. Ultimately winning (23-21) with a lead point earned from a cross court shot by Wu, which the Brahmas were unable to counter. With this, the Mustangs would win against Brahmas in the CIF semifinals (11-10).
“I felt a lot of pressure, [and] there was a lot of adrenaline and excitement, but at the same time, I was very calm because I knew I could trust my partner, Jaxton, and that our teammates were cheering us on. The moment we won I felt really happy and relieved.” Wu said.
On Saturday, May. 11, Walnut played against Arcadia and got runner-up in the CIF finals, losing 9-12.
“The games were tight and we all put up a fight on the court. It was a tight match but we were able to communicate around our flaws to win,” sophomore Ariel Zhao said. “It was a great experience for my badminton career and I’m grateful I got to experience it with the teammates I love.”
