New Henry Assistant

#1 posting 10.30.2006

HENRY ASSISTANT
Minneapolis Henry will have an assistant coach this spring, and it will be a familiar face. Mai Ku Moua, last year's Minneapolis singles champ will be helping coach Tim Miller.

Henry won the conference last year.

Next up: when news breaks

Badminton to Volleyball

#1 posting 8.19.2006

BADMINTON TO VOLLEYBALL
Badminton coaches want volleyball players due to their hitting and there are a few badmintoners playing volleyball at Minneapolis Henry. Wendy Vang, Yer Yang, and Sara Grauvilardell to name a few are playing volleyball. Last year's badminton city champion Mai Ku Moua also played volleyball and was captain in both sports.

Next up September

Quiet Summer

#1 posting 7.21.2006

To be honest there is not a lot of badminton camps, leagues, tournaments that are promoted like the traveling basketball, soccer, volleyball, baseball etc.

I feel that badminton players are really playing for the love of the sport. They may work on the game with their friends, but the contacts along the lines of AAU or Nike tournaments are just not trumpeted as loudly.

If you do have news send it along.

Minneapolis & St. Paul Name All Conference

#1 posting 6.24. 2006

ALL CONFERENCE
Here is a link of AC performers from the Minneapolis and St. Paul City conferences found at the StarTribune. The usual suspects are there with Minneapolis Henry's Mai Ku Moua the city champ at singles and the Southwest duo of Abby Behl and Lydia Kelly.
In St. Paul, the epicenter of badminton, Harding, the epicenter of badminton in St.Paul, led the way with five AC players including state singles champ Pang Thao and the state doubles champion pair of Mai Tria Lee and KaaBao Yang.
There were five juniors out of the 11 spots in Minneapolis. Edison has three AC players returning, Henry 2.
In St. Paul, Harding looks well positioned to go for the trifecta again with 3 of the 4 AC players back. Add in a sophomore in the Honorable Mention category and things look up hill for the rest of the state.

Next up: Monday

Malaysian Open Withdrawls

#1 posting 6.14.2006

MALAYSIAN OPEN
The Danish doubles team withdrew from the Malaysian Open, and that may open the door for the Malayian doubles team of Mohd Fairuzizuan Mohd Tazari-Lin Woon Fui. The Chinese team is in the other side of the brackets. Here is more from the Malaysian Star.

SWAZILAND TO BULGARIA
The Swaziland national badminton team will travel to Bulgaria for some training this August. This is in preparation for the African championships to be held in Nigeria in December. Here is what the Swazi Observer has to say.

Next up: tomorrow

South African Tournament

#1 posting 6.7.2006

SOUTH AFRICAN TOURNAMENT
Usually this blog has posted international events focusing on Asia, but Africa also has a large badminton following.
Swaziland is headed to South Africa for the SA International Touranment. The Swazi Oberver explains about the prep time.

INDIAN ACTION
The AG Uttar Pradesh team knocked off AG Punjab 3-2 in the North-Zone Audit and Accounts Badminton Tournament. The doubles pair of Deepak Saxana and Sanjeev Tiwari provided the winning edge. Story is from Ludhaina News in India.

Next up tomorrow with badminton happenings around the globe.

Singapore Open, Mann to retire

#1 posting 6.6.2006

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
Spain will host the world championships in September. Here is how the Vietnamese team is getting ready. From Nhan Dan Sports.
English 8 time champion Julia Mann will retire after the world championships. She will be the French National coach after her playing days are done. Here is the BBC Sport story.

SINGAPORE OPEN
The doubles team of Lee Wan Wah/Choong Tan Fook will look to take their second title of the year in the Singapore Open. The Malaysian pair are seeded second in the tournament. Here is a lot more from the New Straits Times.

Next up: tomorrow

Hidayat Wins Title

#1 posting 6.4.2006

INDONESIAN OPEN
Taufik Hidayat won the Indonesian open men's title beating Bao Chun Lai of China 21-18, 21-19. This is Hidayat's sixth title in the Indonesian open. This article is from the Antara News.

INDIA SETS UP ACADEMY
The North East section of India has set up their own Badminton Academy. Top local talent is being coached by top level coaches. Need to read more? Here is the Zee News article.

Next up: tomorrow evening with another morsal or two.

How to Increase Badminton in Minnesota

#1 posting 6.3.2006

HOW TO INCREASE TEAMS IN MINNESOTA
With just 16 teams, badminton is a small sport. It definitely has the potential to be bigger. It is relatively inexpensive. Most schoools have PE equipment for badminton. There are no referee costs. How to increase to increase the schools that play?
1. An effort needs to reach out to the parents from neighboring school districts, and those districts with a large Asian population to get their parents to request teams. It is always more persuasive if the people making the request are from and vote in the school district. I am sure the Asian populations in Minneapolis and St. Paul have a network of people that would be willing to lobby on the sports behalf.
2. The coaches need to do outreach to the athletic community professionals in other districts--education, exhibition matches, maybe even some ad hoc scrimmages with club type teams.

Communities that may have a base of support would be schools in Apple Valley, North St. Paul, Woodbury, Roseville, Park Center, Brooklyn Center, Hopkins, Minnetonka, Bloomington, and Richfield for starters. Perhaps a private school or two could join the ranks.

With only two suburban schools on the court the time has come to get proactive. The big push now is for lacrosse, but badminton serves an underserved population.

Sorry I haven't been posting for a while.
I will try to keep a better schedule, even if it is a snippet.

Next: tomorrow late in the day.

Malaysian/Indonesia News

#1 posting 5.26.2006

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Malaysia
Julia Wong is advanced in the Phillipine Open by beating the #17 player in the world. Wong was rated #66. She beat Yip Pui Yin, Hong Kong 17-21, 21-13, 21-14. Here is more on the tournament from the Star.

Indonesia
The Indonesia Open will be held May 31 through June 4. Lee Chong Wei might be able to get the men's singles title. Here is how it might play out according to the New Strait Times.

Next: tomorrow later in the day.

Loose Ends

#1 posting 5.25.2006

MN TOURNAMENT LOOSE ENDS
Here are some of the stories from the Minnesota State Badminton tournament held last week.
Burnsville was host, but they did not advance to the final four. This Week papers tell about the Blaze's win over Minneapolis Southwest, and loss to St. Paul Johnson
On the singles side St. Paul Harding's Pang Thao finished undefeated. I went through the numbers last week, but here are the other sides of the story with the StarTribune and St. Paul Pioneer Press with their accounts
There also was a story about Pang Kou Yang in the Pioneer Press. She played at Highland Park and pushed Pang Thao to the brink in the round of 16 in a 4-11, 11-4, 11-9 match. She has an interesting, and heartbreaking story. You will have to scroll down as she is one of four featured in the article.

Next: tomorrow

Final MN Team Rankings

#1 posting 5.22.2006

Final MN team rankings
1. St. Paul Harding 19-0
2. St. Paul Central 9-8
3. St. Paul Como Park 10-9
4. St. Paul Johnson 11-7
5. St. Paul Arlington 11-6
6. Eden Prairie 8-7
7. Burnsville 9-8
8. St. Paul Humboldt 5-11
9. St. Paul Highland Park 5-12
10. Mpls Edison 9-4
11. Mpls Henry 11-3
12. Mpls Southwest 5-8
13. Mpls Roosevelt 6-10
14. Mpls South 3-9
15. Mpls North 1-10
16. Mpls Washburn 0-9

My Take
This was the first State tournament badminton event I have attended. I enjoyed watching and reporting on the action. However I would modify a few things.
1. Seeding ----I know it is not easy, but in both the team and more so in the individual portion of the tournament some interesting or challenging rounds actually took place early in the tournament. I am specifically thinking of the Pang Thao, Harding vs Kao Song Yang, Highland Park match that went 3 games in the "Sweet 16" it had a championship air and most of the focus was on this match that Thao came back to win. Coaches need to get records in to a central clearing house for sorting and evaluating.
2. the finals-----in this case I am thinking about the individual portion. I believe everyone's focus should be on the championship match at singles, then the double match. It may take a few minutes longer, but I think having a spot light game like that enhances the tournament flavor.

I was happy that programs were available. I wasn't expecting that. I would however add the year in school for the players.

Next up: Thursday

Harding Wins Triple Crown

#1 posting 5.19.2006

St. Paul Harding pulled of the Triple Crown of Badminton today with state championships won by singles Pang Thao, and doubles team Mai Tria Lee and Kaabao Yang. On Wednesday Harding won the State Team Title. It is the first time in the history of the Minnesota tournament that singles, doubles, and the team title resided at one school.
To see results in earlier rounds check out yesterday's posting.

SINGLES
SEMIFINALS
Pang Thao, Harding def Pang Shoua Vang, Harding 11-2, 11-5
In a battle between teammates, Thao, the #1 singles, beat Vang, the #2 singles. Thao didn't score her first point until serve #2 and then racked up three straight. Point one came on a hitting error, followed by a clear and and a smash. Vang also scored on her 2nd serve on a smash. Both players familiar with each other sided out on their next serves. Thao added three more points on serve #4 while Vang added one point on her 4th serve. Thao was able to add two points to her lead on serve five and finished it off on serve six with three more the final point being a drop shot to Vang's left. The game lasted 23 serves in all.
In game two Thao scored first, but Vang actually led 2-1 after her first serve thanks to two hitting errors by Thao. Thao tied it after her 3rd serve, but Vang inched ahead again on her 4th 3-2 with a drop to Thao's right. Thao broke the game open in serve 7 with five points, all winners by Thao. Thao won the right to go the final with a back hand drop on serve 9. This game had 32 serves total.
Most of the game Thao "hit it where she ain't," to quote Wee Willie Keeler, a 19th century baseball player. Vang had to run all over the court to cover shots.
BY THE NUMBERS
Name, School, pts, services, serves, side out %
Thao, Harding, 22, 15, 35, .615
Vang, Harding 7, 13, 20, .333
Thao points: Drops 5, Drives 5, Vang hitting errors: 4, Clears: 2; Smashs: 3; Aces: 3. winner% .818
Vang points: Thao hitting errors 4, Drops 2, Smash 1. winner% .143

Sheng Yang, Como Park def Xiong Yang, Arlington 11-1, 8-11, 11-7
Xiong Yang, the #2 seed, twisted her ankle in game two and was down for a time. She would refuse to take off the her left shoe and played on without the benefit of tape. Yang won that game, but Sheng Yang of Como Park won the deciding third game 11-7. Yang led 3-0 after her first serve. Xiong grabbed the lead at 5-3 after serve number three. Yang tied it at 5 after her 4th serve. Xiong regained the lead 6-5 on her 6th serve with a back hand. Yang broke the game open on serve 9 with four points thanks to three hitting errors. On Yang's 10th serve the game ended with a Xiong hitting error that sailed deep.

3rd PLACE
Xiong Yang, Arlington def Pang Shoua Vang, Harding 11-0, 11-9
FINALS
Pang Thao, Harding def Sheng Yang, Como Park 11-3, 11-4
In a rematch from Wednesday's team semifinals, Thao didn't falter and won for the 27th time this season. On Wednesday she dispatched Yang 11-4, 11-6.
Yang had first serve and made use of it for the first point of the match on Thao's hitting error. Thao didn't waste time establishing her dominance with six points on her first serve. Yang managed to get two more points on her second serve to cut the lead to 6-3, but Thao's second serve it was light's out. Thao added four to put up an insurmontable lead. Thao ended the first game quickly on serve three with a clear. Only 19 serves were needed to complete this game.
In game two Yang again led early, this time with two points on each of her first two serves. Thao took the lead for good on her 3rd serve with her first three points. Thao added one point each on serves 7, 8, and 9, but the points were hard to come by. Thao led 7-4 going into her 13th service and she ended it there with four points including a smash to seal the deal. This game lasted twice as long as game one with 39 serves.
Thao was better on her feet and better with placement throughout the tournament.
Thao provided the second jewel in the triple crown.
BY THE NUMBERS
Name, School, pts, services, serves, side out %
Thao, Harding, 22, 16, 36, .533
Yang, Como Park 7, 15, 22, .438
Thao points: Yang hitting errors 9, drives 5, drops 3, smashes 3, clears 2 winner% .591
Yang points: Thao hitting errors 3, Drops 2, Clears 1, Drives 1. winner% .571

DOUBLES
SEMIFINALS
Mai Tria Lee/Kaabao Yang, Harding def Cydney Vang/Yer Vue, Johnson 15-4, 15-4
Ping Hoang/Ka Yang, Como Park def Dee Xiong/Paosue Vue, Como Park 7-15, 15-13, 15-12
3rd PLACE
Dee Xiong/Paosue Vue, Como Park def Cydney Vang/Yer Vue, Johnson 15-10, 15-2
FINALS
Mai Tria Lee/Kaabao Yang, Harding def Ping Hoang/Ka Yang, Como Park 17-14, 15-4
After the singles were over I came over to watch what proved to be the second game in this match. This too was a rematch from Wednesday's team semifinal. Lee and Yang won that match up 15-1, 15-11.
Mai Tria Lee started out the scoring in game two for Harding with three points on first serve including a smash by Kaabao Yang for point three. For all intents and purposes the title was decided in the second service for Harding when they piled on 9 more points to lead 13-1. At the point Hoang and Yang tightened up the defense and it took the Harding pair seven serves between them before Lee connected again for a point with a clearing shot. Lee ended the 2006 season with an ace. And history was made with the triple crown's final jewel set with Lee & Yang.

It took me awhile to figure out how to present the notes I was taking. Next year the by the numbers figures should be better.
I will continue to blog about badminton, but the frequency will probably drop as the HS season ends.
If you have news, let me know so the world can know.

Next up: Probably monday with a rehash of what has happened.

It is All St. Paul Final Tomorrow

#1 posting 5.18.2006

After the first day of the state individual touranment it will be an all St. Paul semifinals. In fact it will be an all Harding semifinal on one half of the singles side, and an all Como Park semis in the doubles side. Como Park's Sheng Yang joins the doubles team for one spot in the semis. Arlington's Xiong Yang will face Sheng Yang. In the other doubles semi match it will be Mai Tria Lee and Kaabao Yang for Harding's third entry on the day vs Cydney Vang and Yer Vue of Johnson who played singles most of the year, but are partnered in doubles now.
St. Paul had six entries in the quarters with Alvarez from Burnsville and Xiong from Edison getting through the first two rounds.
On the doubles side St. Paul had seven entries with Eden Prairie the only crasher.
Harding will be looking to get the hat trick. They already have the team State title. They are seeking the singles title with #1 Pang Thao and doubles title with #1 Mai Tria Lee and Kaabao Yang.

SINGLES
FIRST ROUND
Pang Thao, Harding def. Mai Ku Moua, Henry 11-0, 11-2
In a match up between the two city champions it was all St. Paul as the #1 overall seed Pang Thao skunked MKM in game one and only gave away two points in game two.
Thao scored three in a row on her second serve and added three more on serve three. At this point three of Thao's points were due to Moua hitting errors. Thao again had a three point run on serve six. Two drops started that run. Thao ended it on her 8th serve with a drop to the left side. All through the match Thao placed the shuttle cross court from Moua. In game one the drop shot was the main point producer for Thao with five.
Game two saw Thao scoring two points right away with a drop and a hitting error. She added three more on serve #2. Moua finally broke through for two points, but they were due to hitting errors. Moua was not able to side out for the game as Thao scored each time she served. The last point was a Moua shot the sailed deep.

Kao Song Yang, Highland Park def. Erica Steele, Eden Prairie 11-0, 11-7
Natalie Hamilton, Humboldt def Nha Phan, SP Central 11-3, 11-4
Chuemai Thao, Edison def Mekka Clark, North 11-7, 11-1
Gabby Alvarez, Burnsville def Karen Obermeyer-Kolb, Johnson 11-7, 11-8
Houa Pha, Henry def Yer Yang, Roosevelt 11-5, 11-2
Pang Shoua Vang, Harding def Heather Morin, Washburn 11-1, 11-0
Pam Vang, Arlington def Pang Thao, Johnson 11-9, 11-6
Xiong Yang, Arlington def Katie Vohnoutka, Eden Prairie 11-7, 11-3

Yer Yang, Como Park def Astia Rope-Baker, Southwest 11-0, 11-7
The next game on court 1
Yang skunked her twin city opponent and it was over very fast. It took Yang three serves to finish game one. On serve two Yang racked up seven points with four due to hitting errors.
Yang had 6 of her points due to ARB hitting errors.
Game two was completely different with ARB scoring the first five points of the game, four on her second serve. Yang didn't get on the scoreboard until her fourth serve where she took advantage of two ARB hitting errors. Yang did not take the lead until her 11th serve at 7-6. ARB had one last point at 7-7. Yang took control on serve 12 10-7 with three points including two clears. To finish the game Yang delivered a smash on serve 13

Khoua Xiong, Highland Park def Nadvia Davis, North 11-2, 11-0
Jaimie Fredrickson, Burnsville def Wanda Vue, South 11-4, 11-4
Sheng Yang, Como Park def Martha Streng, Southwest 11-0, 11-1
Lee Vue, Central def Somaly Yi, Washburn 11-3, 11-5
Ntshua Vang, Roosevelt def Anthia Johnson, Humboldt 11-3, 11-5
Maivue Xiong, Edison def Ma Xiong, South 11-5, 11-0
SWEET 16
Pang Thao, Harding def. Kao Song Yang, Highland Park 4-11, 11-4, 11-9
In the match of the day, at least in the singles division, Thao survived a legitmate scare from KSY. It was a drip, drip, drip beginning as KSY was able to squeeze one point off serves 2 through 5. No one player was able to gain traction. Thao wasn't able to convert a point for five serves. She squeezed off points at service 6 and 8, but sideouts were the rule in this match. In fact most of the crowd in the gym, sensing a classic tussle and perhaps an upset in the making, gravitated to court one. Thao closed the gap to 6-4 after her 14th serve when KSY put the first run of the match together with three points, the first two due to Thao hitting errors. KSY added a clear for point 10 on her 15th serve, and watched a hitting error for the final point. There were 46 serves in this first game.
Thao, with her back to the wall and needing two straight wins, came back in game two with quicker work helped in part to KSY hitting errors. Actually KSY jumped out early 2-0 after one serve, both on Thao hitting errors. After Thao's 3rd serve the #1 seed led 4-2. Two serves later Thao had a 11-4 win. The last six points, all served on the fifth serve came on KSY hitting errors. Only 24 serves were taken in this contest.
KSY got the jump early in the deciding third game 3-0 with two drives and a hitting error. On Thao's second serve she strung 7 points, but this time it was due to Thao's shots starting with a drop, smash, drive. KSY righted herself and took the lead at 8-7 on serve five. KSY's last lead was at 9-8 after her 6th serve. Thao closed out the exciting with three points on her 8th serve with two hitting errors and to finish a big smash. There were 34 serves in the final game.

Natalie Hamilton, Humboldt def Chuemai Thao, Edison 13-10, 11-6
Gabby Alvarez, Burnsville def Houa Pha, Henry 11-2, 11-8
Pang Shoua Vang, Harding def Pam Vang, Arlington 7-11, 11-4, 11-6
Xiong Yang, Arlington def Yer Yang, Como Park 11-4, 11-0
Khoua Xiong, Highland Park def Jaimie Fredrickson, Burnsville 11-4, 11-0
Sheng Yang, Como Park def Lee Vue, Central 13-12, 0-11, 11-2
Maivue Xiong, Edison def Ntshua Vang, Roosevelt 11-1, 11-1
QUARTERFINALS
Pang Thao, Harding def. Natalie Hamilton, Humboldt 11-3, 11-1
This was a snap compared to the sweet 16 round for Thao. Thao scored each and every time she served in game one. Thao opened with three straight and padded the lead on her second serve with four more including the last two drops. Hamilton did not get on the board until serve #4 with three points--all hitting errors. Thao finished game one as she finished game 3 in the sweet 16 with a smash. 22 serves total got the job done.
Things did not go well for Hamilton in game two. In fact the body language even before the start of game one indicated to me that Hamilton had surrendered. It appeared that lack of effort conceded the game to Thao. After the first serve in game two the white flag was beginning to fly. Thao ripped off six points to start, four of which came by hitting errors. Hamilton managed to get a point on her first serve due to Thao's hitting error. After Thao's fourth serve it was over. She added three more on that serve. There were only 18 serves for this game.

Pang Shoua Vang, Harding def Gabby Alvarez, Burnsville 11-6, 11-1
Alvarez started off up 2-0 after her second serve. She had an ace on point two as PSV guessed long. PSV got her first point on her sixth serve on Alvarez's hitting error. PSV took the lead 5-3 after her 8th serve. Three points were due to hitting errors. Alvarez came back with her 9th serve to retake the lead 6-5. PSV added four points on her 11th serve, again three coming from hitting errors. Alvarez added a point on her 10th serve on a drop to the right side, but PSV scored on serve 12 and 13. The last point coming on a smash. 42 serves put this game second to the Thao/KSY match.
The second game broke open on PSV's fourth serve as she strung together 7 points and a 9-0 lead. Four of the points came via hitting errors. PSV added one more point on serve six with another hitting error point before Alvarez gained her first point on a hitting error. PSV finished the game on her 7th serve on a hitting error. 24 serves were all it took for this game.

Xiong Yang, Arlington def Khoua Xiong, Highland Park 11-5, 11-4
Sheng Yang, Como Park def Maivue Xiong, Edison 11-7, 11-2
SEMIFINALS
Tomorrow at 3 pm at Harding
Pang Thao, Harding vs Pang Shoua Vang, Harding
Xiong Yang, Arlington vs Sheng Yang, Como Park

DOUBLES
FIRST ROUND
Mai Tria Lee/Kaabao Yang, Harding def Mai Chia Yang/Yer Yang, Henry 15-4, 15-3
Yer Vang/Phetsamay Chindavong, Central def Nicole Weishaar/Vanessa Jones, Washburn 15-0, 15-1
Katherine McQuarter/Karen Perault-Boughton, South def Poua Khang/Vang Khang, North 15-0, 15-11
Linda Xiong/Pakou Vang, Johnson def Michelle Teigland/Lindsey Mortinson, Burnsville 15-2, 9-15, 15-4
Y/See Xiong, Edison def Pa Vue/Bao Vang, Roosevelt 15-5, 15-6
Cydney Vang/Yer Vue, Johnson def Bee Vang/Emily Huynh, Highland Park 15-6, 15-8
Danielle Meservy/Sokhi Tong, Eden Prairie def Ka Yang/Hnou Xiong, Arlington 15-4, 17-15
Katie Brugh/Brianna Lutz, Burnsville def Choua Vang/Jillian Vue, Humboldt 15-5, 15-7
Joua Lor/Cassey Quach, Central def Panhia Lee/Shoua Thao, Highland Park 15-0, 15-2
Kung Choney/Tenzin Wangmo, Roosevelt def Kiara Nelson/Sassy Yang, North 15-0, 15-0
Dee Xiong/Paosue Vue, Como Park def Kalia Yang/Lee Thao, Humboldt 15-11, 15-12
Nong Vue/Mee Vang, Henry def Ala Xiong/Charlotte Rymanowski, Edison 15-4, 15-3
Dia Xiong/Panhia Yang, Harding def Larysa Euteneuer/Rebecca Wade, Eden Prairie 2-15, 15-12, 15-10
Ping Hoang/Ka Yang, Como Park def Abby Behl/Lydia Kelly, Southwest 15-9, 15-5
Vansana Sisomphane/Danielle Sack, Washburn def. Rachel Loh/Melissa Lynn, Southwest 15-10, 18-17
Yer Vang/Khue Yang, Arlington def Kristina Thoa/Mai Tao Yang, South 15-3, 15-5
SWEET 16
Mai Tria Lee/Kaabao Yang, Harding def Yer Vang/Phetsamay Chindavong, Central 15-3, 15-5
Linda Xiong/Pakou Vang, Johnson def Katherine McQuarter/Karen Perault-Boughton, South 15-8, 15-2
Cydney Vang/Yer Vue, Johnson def Y/See Xiong, Edison 10-15, 15-10, 15-3
Danielle Meservy/Sokhi Tong, Eden Prairie def Katie Brugh/Brianna Lutz, Burnsville 10-15, 15-12, 15-13
Joua Lor/Cassey Quach, Central def Kung Choney/Tenzin Wangmo, Roosevelt 15-1, 15-0
Dee Xiong/Paosue Vue, Como Park def Nong Vue/Mee Vang, Henry 15-0, 15-4
Ping Hoang/Ka Yang, Como Park def Dia Xiong/Panhia Yang, Harding 8-15, 15-12, 15-11
Yer Vang/Khue Yang, Arlington def Vansana Sisomphane/Danielle Sack, Washburn 15-0, 15-1
QUARTERFINALS
Mai Tria Lee/Kaabao Yang, Harding def Linda Xiong/Pakou Vang, Johnson 15-4, 15-3
Cydney Vang/Yer Vue, Johnson def Danielle Meservy/Sokhi Tong, Eden Prairie 17-15, 6-15, 15-4
I only saw the third game in this contest and it broke open in the fifth serving sequence when Johnson duo added six points to go up 10-2. Johnson started the run with an ace and then a drop before four hitting errors kicked in. 43 serves finished this game.
Dee Xiong/Paosue Vue, Como Park def Joua Lor/Cassey Quach, Central 15-9, 15-10
Ping Hoang/Ka Yang, Como Park def Yer Vang/Khue Yang, Arlington 15-10, 15-8
SEMIFINALS
Tomorrow at Harding at 3pm
Mai Tria Lee/Kaabao Yang, Harding vs Cydney Vang/Yer Vue, Johnson
Dee Xiong/Paosue Vue, Como Park vs Ping Hoang/Ka Yang, Como Park

Both Minneapolis city singles and doubles champs exited after the first round. Behl and Kelly were ousted by the Como Park duo Ping Hoang and Ka Yang

Tomorrow after the MN State finals

Harding Sweeps Central for 5th Title

#1 posting 5.17.2006

HARDING WINS STATE
In an all St. Paul final four, Harding won its fifth title in seven years with a sweep over the suprising Central team. Harding has won titles in 2000, 2002, 03, 04 and today. Last year Johnson won the tournament.

Central, the #6 seed, put together two upsets tor reach the final. Yesterday they got by #3 St. Paul Arlington, and in the semis beat #2 Johnson 4-3 with the deciding contest coming in second doubles with Central winning 15-4, 12-15, 15-11.

In the third place contest Como Park beat Johnson 4-3.

SEMIFINALS
Harding 6, Como Park 1
Dee Xiong prevented the sweep at 3rd singles with a two game sweep. The only other Como Park player to take a game was Pao Sue Vue at Second singles in the second game, and that was extra points 13-12.
SINGLES
1. Pang Thao (H) def Sheng Yang 11-4, 11-6
In game one Pang Thao got off to a 4-0 start with three points off her first service. Yang closed the gap to 6-4 on her 8th serve. Of the four points scored for Yang, three were Thao hitting errors. Thao wrapped up the win with four points on her 10th serve with a smash as an exclamation point on point 11.
Again Thao grabbed the 4-0 lead after two serves. Yang tied it with three points on her second serve, and one more on serve three. Again Thao provide three of the points on hitting errors. Thao regained the lead with two drops on serve six. Yang tied it with two more hitting error points on her 9th serve. Thao strung together three points with two drops sandwiching a hitting error for a 9-6 lead after her 10th serve. After a side out, Thao finished off the contest with a drop and a hitting error.
2. Mee Xiong (H) def Pao Sue Vue 11-4, 12-13, 11-2
Extra session game two, but Xiong took control of game 3
3. Dee Xiong (CP) def Pang Shoua Vang 11-0, 11-8
A skunk in game one for Dee Xiong
4. Stephanie King (H) def Yer Yang 11-5, 8-11, 11-?
forgot to get the final result
DOUBLES
1. Mai Tria Lee/Kaa Bao Yang (H) def Ping Hoang/Ka Yang 15-1, 15-11
2. Dia Xiong/Pa Nhia Yang (H) def Ker Lor/Pa Nhia Lee 15-0, 15-5
Xiong & Yang got a skunk in game one.
3. Ger Lee/Na Lee Xiong (H) def Mai Tia Yang/Mai Kao Yang 15-10, 15-5

Central 4, Johnson 3
SINGLES
1. Lee Vue (C) def Yer Vue 11-4, 11-4
2. Cydney Vang (J) def Nha Phan 11-4, 11-2
3. Yer Vang (C) def Linda Xiong 6-11, 11-3, 11-4
4. Pakou Vang (J) def Phetsamay Chindavong 1-11, 11-8, 11-3
DOUBLES
1. Joua Lor/Cassey Quach (C) def Karen Obermeyer-Kolb/Pang Thao 15-8, 15-4
2. Xiong Xiong/Tracy Vangh (C) def Kiara Nelson/Blia Cha 15-4, 12-15, 15-11
3. Belick Pha/Kai Thao (J) def Xai Lee/Ashley Vitulli 15-9, 9-15, 17-15

STATE CHAMPIONSHIP
Harding 7, Central 0
1. Pang Thao (H) def Lee Vue 11-4, 11-1
Thao raced out to a 6-0 lead after one serve with a mix of winners including two drops, two drives, an ace, and two hitting errors by Vue. Vue got one point each at serve one and two, both on Thao hitting errors. On Thao's 4th serve she added three more points for a 9-2 lead. The first game ended on Thao's 8th serve with a drive.
Thao broke game two open on her 4th serve with 6 points to make it 8-1. She started the run with two drops, followed by two drives then two hitting errors. Thao ended the match with two points on her 7th serve including a smash for point 11.
2. Mee Xiong (H) def Nah Phan 11-3, 3-11, 11-1
Xiong came back after a flip in game two with a strong performace in game three. Also had the off game two in the semis.
3. Pang Shoua Vang (H) def Yer Vang 5-11, 11-8, 13-12
final game to enter into the sweep, but as you can see it went to extra points.
4. Stephanie King (H) def Phetsamay Chindavong 11-2, 11-5
DOUBLES
1. Mai Tria Lee/Kaa Bao Yang (H) def Joua Lor/Cassey Quach 15-10, 10-15, 15-12
2. Dia Xiong/Pa Nhia Yang (H) def Xiong Xiong/Tracy Vangh 15-9, 15-1
3. Ger Lee/Na Lee Xiong (H) def Xai Lee/Ashley Vitulli 15-6, 15-1

THIRD PLACE
Como Park 4, Johnson 3
SINGLES
1. Sheng Yang (CP) def Yer Vue 11-6, 11-7
2. Paosue Vue (CP) def Cydney Vang 11-7, 11-6
3. Linda Xiong (J) def Dee Xiong 11-4, 11-8
4. Pakou Vang (J) def Yer Yang 11-4, 11-9
DOUBLES
1. Ping Hoang/Ka Yang (CP) def Karen Obermeyer-Kolb/Pang Thao 9-15, 15-11, 15-2
2. Pa Nhia Moua/Kao Lee Xiong (J) def Panhia Lee/Ker Lor 15-14, 7-15, 15-13
3. Mai Tia Yang/Mai Kao Yang (CP) def Belick Pha/Kia Thao 7-15, 15-3, 15-8

Next up: Tomorrow the individual State titles will start at Harding at 3 pm. Both singles and doubles will work down to a final four for the tournament finale on Friday. These singles players will enter into the doubles side of the tournament
Kalia Yang, Humboldt will partner with usual #2 singles Lee Thao to form the #1 doubles
Yer Vue, Johnson will partner with usual #2 singles Cydney Vang to form #1 doubles

Johnson advances to Semis

#1 posting 5.16.2006

JOHNSON ADVANCES TO SEMIS
St. Paul Johnson swept Henry, and then took out Burnsville 6-1 to advance to the MN State Semifinals at Burnsville tomorrow. Burnsville reached what would be considered the quarterfinals with a 7-0 sweep of Minneapolis Southwest.

Both Minneapolis champions, Singles champ Mai Ku Moua of Henry and Abby Bell and Lydia Kelly of Southwest lost their games. MKM's game went to three games.
It was Henry's first time all year that they were swept. Three games went the distance with Johnson at 1st and 3rd singles, and 1st doubles. Houa Pha of Henry was skunked twice at 2nd singles.

FIRST ROUND
St. Paul Johnson 7, Minneapolis Henry 0
SINGLES
1. Yer Vue (J) def Mai Ku Moua 11-6, 8-11, 11-4
2. Cydney Vang (J) def Houa Pha 11-0, 11-0
3. Linda Xiong (J) def Mai Vang Vang 6-11, 11-4, 11-8
4. Pa Kou Vang (J) def Lisa Thao 11-0, 11-4
DOUBLES
1. Karen Kolb/Pang Thao (J) def Mai Chia Yang/Yer Yang 15-5, 6-15, 15-12
2. Pania Moua/Kao Lee Xiong (J) def Nong Vue/Mee Vang 15-4, 15-5
3. Belik Pha/Kia Thao (J) def PaKou Yang/Lee Moua 15-6, 15-8

Burnsville 7, Minneapolis Southwest 0
SINGLES
1. Abby Alvarez (B) def Matha Streng 11-0, 11-2
2. Jaimie Fredrickson (B) def Astia Roper 11-2, 11-2
3. Katie Johnson (B) def Anna Yarborough 11-3, 11-3
4. Megan Olinger (B) def Lee Xiong 11-3, 11-0
DOUBLES
1. Katie Burgh/Brianna Lutz (B) def Abby Bell/Lydia Kelly 15-4, 15-7
2. Michelle Mortinson/Lyndsay Teigland (B) def Rachel Lowe/Mellisa Lehn 15-0, 15-2
3. Rachael Gilliland/Kelly Pramann (B) def Rachel Neverman/Rose Kantor 15-0, 15-3

QUARTERFINALS
St. Paul Johnson 6, Burnsville 1
SINGLES
1. Yer Vue (J) def Abby Alvarez 4-11, 15-6, 13-10
2. Cydney Vang (J) def Jaimie Fredrickson 11-4, 11-8
3. Linda Xiong (J) def Katie Johnson 6-11, 11-9, 11-8
4. Pa Kou Vang (J) def Megan Olinger 11-5, 7-11, 11-10?
DOUBLES
1. Katie Burgh/Brianna Lutz (B) def Karen Kolb/Pang Thao 15-3, 15-5
2. Pania Moua/Kao Lee Xiong (J) def Michelle Mortinson/Lyndsay Teigland 15-12, 15-4
3. Belik Pha/Kia Thao (J) def Rachael Gilliland/Kelly Pramann 10-15, 15-2, 15-9

GAMES I WATCHED
All of these games were at 1st singles

Yer Vue, Johnson vs Mai Ku Moua, Henry
Vue won game one 11-6 on the strength of four points on hitting errors and four points on drop shots. MKM led 4-1 with three straight points on her fourth serve. Vue took the lead with four points on her fifth serve 5-4. Vue added three more points at serve #7, the last two drop shots. Vue added two points on Moua hitting errors on serve 8. MKM sided out three straight times before Vue connected on a drop on serve 11.
MKM again led early, and this time kept that lead. She led 3-1 after the 6th serve. She increased the lead to 6-2 on the 8th serve. MKM had four of the points on Vue's hitting errors. Vue did take the lead at 7-6 on serve #13. Again the drop shots worked for Vue with two points. One good turn deserves another and Moua put together a four point run on her 14th serve to regain the lead 10-7 with the last two drops. Vue cut the lead to 10-8 on a drive, but Moua sided out with a clear. On serve #15 Moua produced an ace serve to close out game two.
In game three Moua took a 2-0 lead after two serves with a point a serve, both drops. Vue tied it on her third serve. Moua gained the lead back on serve #4 with two more points 4-2. The game broke open on Vue's 6th serve with four points 8-4. Vue finished with three points on serve 9, the last being a fan on a clear shot.

Abby Alvarez vs Matha Streng
This was over very fast as Burnsville's Alvarez thoroughly dominated Streng. Alvarez had nine points in game one on either aces, smashes, drives, or drops, only two came from hitting errors. the second game was more of the same although Streng managed to get two straight points after trailing 8-0 on her fourth serve, and both of those points were off hitting errors. Alvarez ended the contest on her 5th serve with two drops. The total contest when on the court lasted under 9 minutes.

Yer Vue vs Abby Alvarez
Johnson Vue's came back after losing the first game for a 4-11, 11-6, 13-10.
Abby Alvarez took the early game, but trailed 3-1 after Vue's second serve. Alvarez tied it up on her third serve. On serve #5 she added three more points. Six of Alvarez's points were due to hitting errors by Vue.
Alvarez continued her hot play with a 5-0 lead after her 3rd serve including three in a row on that serve. The game turned on Vue's 7th serve when she scored five straight points to take a 8-5 lead. Vue was taking advantage of points off of Alvarez's back hand hitting errors. On Vue's 10th serve she closed out the game with three points. Vue took advantage of 7 hitting errors in this win.
Vue led early at 2-0. Alvarez tied it on her second serve. Vue pushed it back up to 4-2 after fourth serve. Alvarez took the lead at 5-4 after her 4th serve helped by two hitting errors. Vue see sawed back in front on her 5th serve 6-5, while Alvarez led 7-6 after her 6th serve. The game was tied aat 8, 9, and 10. Vue broke the tie on her 10th serve with an ace, and a hitting error for a 12-10 lead. Alvarez sided out on a drop, but Vue sided out with a hitting error by Alvarez. Vue's 11th serve ended the contest with another hitting error. Seven of Vue's points were throurgh hitting errors.

Whispers and Rumoramas
Humboldt's #1 and #2 singles may pair up for the doubles portion of the state tournament on Thursday and Friday. Indications are they would be the team to beat. They were partners last year.

Next up: The MN state tournament team semis and finals from Burnsville. games start at 4 pm

Harding Hat Trick Potential

#1 posting 5.15.2006

HAT TRICK IN THE OFFING?

Tomorrow the MN State badminton tournament begins with four teams headed to four sites. St. Paul has hosting duties with all four games. Harding, Johnson, Arlington, and Como Park will take on hosting duties. After tomorrow the top four will advance to the state semis at Burnsville.

At this point Harding would be favored for the team title, along with the individual title (Pang Thao) and doubles title (Mai Tria Lee and Kaa Bao Yang). They would pull of the "hat trick" if they swept all three.

CANADIAN ACTION
Alberta
Hinton won some medals in the zone tournament last week. Twins Braden and Kelsey Pleckaitis won the singles titles for boys and girls respectivley. Here is the Hinton Parklander with more on the twin triumps.

MN Rankings, Seedings, Kollipar, Kims IL Champs

#1 posting 5.14.2006

MINNESOTA RANKINGS
1. St. Paul Harding 15-0
2. St. Paul Johnson 9-5
3. St. Paul Arlington 10-5
4. St. Paul Como Park 7-8
5. Eden Prairie 7-6
6. St. Paul Central 6-7
7. Burnsville 8-7
8. St. Paul Humboldt 4-10
9. St. Paul Highland Park 5-11
10. Minneapolis Edison 8-3
11. Minneapolis Henry 11-2
12. Minneapolis Southwest 5-7
13. Minneapolis Roosevelt 6-9
14. Minneapolis South 3-7
15. Minneapolis North 1-9
16. Minneapolis Washburn 0-8

MN SEEDINGS
The team portion of the state tournament begins on Tuesday. Seeding for the top teams did not produce any real shocks. It looks as if the only seeds given were 1-8. After that it looks like a random draw. In every tournament run by the NCAA, or any other organization 1 would play 16, 2 would play 15 and so on down to 8 playing 9. The only glaring problem in the way it was seeded this season was Henry playing #2 Johnson. In my rankings Henry should have been up against #6 St. Paul Central. As it is on Tuesday the Johnson/Henry contest will feature teams with a combined record of 20-7 easily the tops in the Tuesday pairing.

Action starts Tuesday at #1 Harding; #2 Johnson, #3 Arlington, and #4 Como Park.

ILLINOIS STATE TOURNAMENT
Karishma Kollipar, Hinsdale Central sophomore, won her second singles title in a dominating 15-2, 15-1 victory over Kim Jaros of Downers Grove North. Kollipara did lose one game in the semis, in a 3-11, 11-6, 11-2 to Lindsay Gibbel of Prospect.
Gloria and Christen Kim of Glenbrook South took the doubles title in a 15-12, 15-11 win over Courtney Brooks and Jenny Nguyen of West Aurora.
Hinsdale South shared the team title with Downers Grove North. Hinsdale South won the title last year and it was the first time a school won back to back titles.
The article is from the Chicago Sun Times
Lockport finished 8th in the team play thanks to Jen and Janine Henry. The pair finished third in the doubles tournament. Their story is in the Herald News.

Next up

Illinois State Tournament

#1 posting 5.13.2006

ILLINOIS STATE TOURNAMENT
The Glenbrook South duo of Kim and Kim survived a scare in the first round. They lost the first game to Hinsdale South's Caitlyn Wott and Alexandra Siedlecki 15-10 Here is the Journal Gazette-Times-Courrier (that's a lot of papers). Here was the story from the Glenview Announcements on the Kim duo

Two Mid Suburban powers will meet in the quarterfinals. Kristina Prus, Buffalo Grove will face conference champion Lindsay Gibbel, Prospect in the quarterfinals. The story from the Daily Herald

Here is proof that volleyball players make for good badminton players. Emily Sawin, Lincoln-Way Central, is headed to College of Charleston to play volleyball, but she is in the quarterfinals in the state singles tournament with a 35-2 record. Her story is from the Chicago Sun-Times

In a preview of the tournament two seniors from Andrew and Downers Grove North relive last years tournament. Individual honors are nice, what they want is the team title. Here is more from the Chicago Sun-Times

Here are some teams that will be playing in the state Fremd sent five players as did Maine South. New Trier has a double team at state. Evanston sent Meredith Nelson. Buffalo Grove, Lincoln-Way and Lockport all are sending players to the big event. The Pioneer Press (not the St. Paul version) provided the stories for Fremd, Maine South, New Trier, Evanston, Buffalo Grove. The Joliet Herald News

MINNESOTA NEWS
Burnsvillle split last week with two wins against St. Paul Highland Park (4-3) and Minneapolis Roosevelt (7-0). Megan Olinger at 4th singles took the key match against SPHP. The article is from the This Week paper.

CALIFORNIA NEWS
The CIF will be dropping badminton as an official sport due to the lack of schools fielding teams.
Mt. Eden had a strong showing in the Hayward Area Athletic League. While Carla Carvajal from Newark won the singles title from the Mission Valley Athletic League. Both stories are from Inside Bay.

Next up: Tomorrow with MN rankings and a look at the seeds for the state. Also Illinois State results

Harding Takes Singles, Doubles Titles

#1 posting 5.12.2006

It was a sweep of the singles and doubles titles for St. Paul Harding. Pang Thao took the singles title over Arlington's Xiong Yang 11-5, 5-11, 11-8. Her teammates Mai Tria Lee and Kaa Bao Yang did not have too many problems in the championship against Central's Joua Lor and Cassey Quach 15-5, 15-2

Pang Thao of St. Paul Harding won the singles tournament in the St. Paul City tournament. Thao lost only one game on the day and that was the middle game in the championship battle with Arlington's Xiong Yang. Thao started off with a shut out over Natalie Hamilton of Humboldt. In the quarterfinals Thao beat Lee Vue of Central 11-8 and 11-2. Kalia Vang, another Humboldt player, was the semifinal victim 11-3, 11-7. Thao started off with a win in the championship 11-5, but Yang mirrored that in the second game to force a deciding third game. Thao won 11-8 for the title. For the tournament Thao allowed 4.889 points.

Lee & Yang did not lose a game all day. Their tightest contest was in game one in the semifinals when they beat Como Park's Ka Yang and Ping Hoang, Como Park 15-10. Their average points given up was 4.875 on the tournament.

FIRST ROUND
Natalie Hamilton, Humboldt def Khoua Xiong, Highland Park 1-11, 11-9, 11-9
Ling Wang, Arlington def Yer Vue, Johnson 11-6, 11-8
Lee Vue, Central def Yer Yang, Como Park 11-4, 11-3
Pa Kou Vang, Johnson def Jane Lee, Arlington 6-11, 11-6, 11-8
Phetsamay Chindayong, Central def Micha Evertz, Highland Park 11-0, 11-4
Dee Xiong, Como Park def Stephanie King, Harding 9-11, 11-5, 3-0
Nha Phan, Central def Jillian Vue, Humboldt 11-7, 11-2
Khoua Yang, Highland Park def Linda Xiong, Johnson 11-7, 11-9
Mee Xiong, Harding def Pao Sue Vue, Como Park 11-8, 11-3
Sheng Yang, Como Park def Lee Thao, Humboldt 9-11, 11-5, 11-3
Pam Vang, Arlington def Yer Vang, Central 11-1, 11-8
Pang Shoua Vang, Harding def Cydney Vang, Johnson 3-0, 3-0
SECOND ROUND
Pang Thao, Harding def. Natalie Hamiton, Humboldt 11-0, 11-0
Lee Vue, Central def Ling Wang, Arlington 11-7, 11-5
Kalia Yang, Humboldt def Pa Kou Vang, Johnson 11-3, 11-2
Kao Song Yang, Highland Park def Phetsamay Chindayong, Central 11-1, 11-1
Xiong Yang, Arlington def Dee Xiong, Como Park 11-5, 11-7
Nha Phan, Central def Khoua Yang, Highland Park 11-5, 11-6
Mee Xiong, Harding def Sheng Yang, Como Park 11-5, 11-8Pam Vang, Arlington def Pang Shoua Vang, Harding 11-8, 11-5
QUARTERFINALS
Pang Thao, Harding def. Lee Vue, Central 11-8, 11-2Kalia Yang, Humboldt def Kao Song Yang, Highland Park 11-9, 9-11, 11-6
Xiong Yang, Arlington def Nha Phan, Central 11-1, 11-0
Pam Vang, Arlington def Mee Xiong, Harding 11-5, 11-9
SEMIFINALS
Pang Thao, Harding def Kalia Yang, Humboldt 11-3, 11-7
Xiong Yang, Arlington def Pam Vang, Arlington 3-0, 11-8
CONSOLATION
Pao Sue Vue, Como Park def Khoua Xiong, Highland Park score unknown
3RD PLACE
Kalia Yang, Humboldt def Pam Vang, Arlington 11-5, 11-5
CHAMPIONSHIP
Pang Thao, Harding def Xiong Yang, Arlington 11-5, 5-11, 11-8

DOUBLES
FIRST ROUND
Shavon Washington/Tanisha Brown, Arlington def Drew Thao/Mai Nong Hang, Highland Park 15-0, 15-2
Ger Lee/NaLee Xiong, Harding def Shoua Thao/Ka Bao Yang, Highland Park 15-13, 15-9
Ka Yang/Hnou Xiong, Arlington def Ia Thao/Isabel Torres, Humboldt 15-7, 15-5
Karen Obermeyer-Kolb/Pang Thao, Johnson def Bee Yang/Emily Huynh, Highland Park 15-4, 15-5
PaNhia Lee/Ker Lor, Como Park def Mai Chor Lee/Dia Mee Xiong, Humboldt 15-4, 15-4
SECOND ROUND
Mai Tria Lee/Kao Bao Yang, Harding def Xiong Xiong/Tracy Vangh, Central 15-2, 15-3
Shavon Washington/Tanisha Brown, Arlington def Sheng Yang/Choua Vang, Humboldt 15-9, 15-5
Ka Yang/Ping Hoang, Como Park def Belick Pha/Kia Thao, Johnson 15-9, 15-12
Yer Vang/Khue Yang, Arlington def Ger Lee/NaLee Xiong, Harding 15-13, 15-10
Joua Lor/Cassty Quach, Central def Mai Ka Lee/Kao Lee Xiong, Johnson 15-1, 15-0
Ka Yang/Hnou Xiong, Arlington def Mai Tia Yang/Mai Kao Yang, Como Park 9-15, 15-12, 15-8
Dia Xiong/PaNhia Yang, Harding def Karen Obermeyer-Kolb/Pang Thao, Johnson 15-6, 15-4
PaNhia Lee/Ker Lor, Como Park def Xia Lee/Ashley Vitulli, Central 15-9, 15-12
QUARTERFINALS
Mai Tria Lee/Kao Bao Yang, Harding def Shavon Washington/Tanisha Brown, Arlington 15-4, 15-8
Ka Yang/Ping Hoang, Como Park def Yer Vang/Khue Yang, Arlington 12-15, 3-2, 15-8
Joua Lor/Cassty Quach, Central def Ka Yang/Hnou Xiong, Arlington 15-6, 15-4
Dia Xiong/PaNhia Yang, Harding def PaNhia Lee/Ker Lor, Como Park 15-2, 15-3
SEMIFINALS
Mai Tria Lee/Kao Bao Yang, Harding def Ka Yang/Ping Hoang, Como Park 15-10, 15-5
Joua Lor/Cassty Quach, Central def Dia Xiong/PaNhia Yang, Harding 15-5, 15-4
CONSOLATION
Belick Pha/Kia Thao, Johnson, def. Sheng Yang/Choua Vang, Humboldt, 15-6, 15-11
3RD PLACE
Dia Xiong/PaNhia Yang, Harding, def. Ka Yang/Ping Hoang, Como Park, 15-8, 13-15, 15-6
CHAMPIONSHIP
Mai Tria Lee/Kaa Bao Yang, Harding, def. Joua Lor/Cassey Quach, Central, 15-5, 15-2

MN STATE NEXT WEEK
The team portion begins next week on Tuesday with four sites hosting
#1 Harding will face North with #8 Humboldt playing Edison in the other contest
#4 Como Park faces Highland Park and #5 Eden Prairie plays South
#2 Johnson plays Henry while #7 Burnsville takes on Southwest
#3 Arlington battles Washburn as #6 Central tussels Roosevelt
On Wednesday the action moves to Burnsville for the semis and finals
On Thursday the individual tournament begins. More on that later

Next up: tomorrow afternoon.

Moua, Behl & Kelly Minneapolis Champs

#1 posting 5.11.2006

MINNEAPOLIS CITY TOURNAMENT RESULTS
Mai Ku Moua, Minneapolis Henry avenged a loss to Edison's Mai Vue Xiong two weeks ago to claim the Minneapolis Singles title. Moua lost the first game, but came back and won 11-2, 11-5 to win the title.
Abby Behl and Lydia Kelly, Southwest won the doubles title against Edison's #2 team Ala Xiong & Charlotte Rymanowski.
Both Moua and Behl & Kelly were the second seeded in their respective tournaments.
Southwest was the only other school to be represented in the Henry/Edison semi party. Edison advanced both of their 1s and 2s to the semis.

SINGLES
SEMIS
Mai Vue Xiong, Edison def. Houa Pha, Henry 11-6, 11-4
Mai Ku Moua, Henry def Stacy Xiong, Edison 11-7, 11-6
3rd Place
Houa Pha, Henry def Stacy Xiong, Edison 11-7, 13-10
Championship
Mai Ku Moua, Henry def Mai Vue Xiong, Edison 9-11, 11-2, 11-5
This was the third time this year Moua and Xiong faced each other and Moua won the rubber match on Edison's home floor. Moua beat Xiong April 11 13-12, 11-6, while Xiong won on May 2 11-9, 11-4.
Game one was fairly tight early with Moua grabbing a 3-2 lead, but Xiong was able to side out against Moua six straight times. At this point Xiong outscored Moua 5-0 including three points on the 9th serve. Moua stormed back (I had the game tied at 10) but after gaining two points Moua had a hitting error. Xiong finished the game on her 13th service with Moua providing the point on a hitting error. Moua gave Edison 5 points with hitting errors, while Xiong also gave away five points.
Moua led right from the start after a missed serve by Xiong. By the seventh serve Moua led 7-1. Moua sided out five straight times against Xiong. On Moua's 10th serve she added four points, three of which were Xiong hitting errors 11-2. Xiong had 10 hitting errors for Moua points. Moua did not give away any points this game.
In the deciding third game Xiong led at 3-1 and 4-2. Moua took the lead at 5-4 on her 6th serve. Five straight side outs kept the score the same. Moua added an insurance point on her 9th serve. Xiong took her final point on her 9th serve. Moua scored on a drop on her 10th serve. On serve number 12 Moua finished the contest with a drop, a clear, a smash and a Xiong hitting error. Moua gave away four points on hitting errors, while Xiong gave away two.
Moua seemed to get stronger and played with a mission. Her power and placement making Xiong cover the whole court wore out her smaller opponent.

DOUBLES
SEMIS
Ala Xiong/Charlotte Rymanowski, Edison def Mai Chia Yang/Yer Yang, Henry 15-13, 13-15, 15-9. This was an upset as the Henry team of Yang & Yang were 13-0. In fact they had only lost three games all year.
Henry had a 6-3 lead on their fourth service. Edison took the lead at 7-6 on the strength of Rymanowski's three serves. All of those points were delivered on hitting errors by Henry. Henry did retake the lead on Yer Yang's serve 9-8. Again the three points on Yer Yang's serve were all the result of Edison hitting errors. On Edison's next service they cashed in four points, three on Xiong's serve. Edison led 12-9 at this point. Henry tied it at 13, but after Yer Yang tied it, she missed the next serve. Xiong then provided the final two points: one on a Henry hitting error, and one on an ace.
Henry gave 10 points to Edison with hitting errors, Edison gave six points on hitting errors.
In game two Henry again jumped out to a 6-2 lead. Again Edison came back and led 7-6. It was back and forth at that point with Henry grabbing a 9-7 lead only for Edison to reclaim it at 11-9. It was during Mai Chia Yang's serve that Henry had the lead for good. MCY served up five straight points, three of which were Edison hitting errors. Henry led 14-12. Xiong cut the lead to 14-13 on a MCY hitting error, but then Edison had two straight hitting errors to give the serve back to Henry. Rymanowski fanned and Henry won game two 15-13.
Game three had the same exact elements as the previous two with Henry taking a 6-3 lead. Rymanowski served up seven straight points once Edison got the serve. All seven were hitting error points. Three were wide, two were short, and two were in the net. It was Edison 10-6 at this point. Henry did cut that lead to 10-9, but after giving back the serve to Edison in was all Rymanowski as she served out the game 15-9. But Edison earned some of the points in this go round. Rymanowski had a smash, Xiong a drop, and a drive to end the game.
The two played earlier in the year with Yang & Yang winning on April 11 15-11, 15-12 when Xiong & Rymanowski were playing first doubles.

Abby Behl/Lydia Kelly, Southwest def See Vang/Chue Mi Thao, Edison --I somehow forgot to get this score.
3rd Place
Yang/Yang, Henry def. Vang/Thao, Edison 15-11, 15-4
Championship
Behl/Kelly, Southwest def. Xiong/Rymanowski 17-14, 6-15, 15-6

Next up: tomorrow afternoon with St. Paul results (I hope)

Minneapolis Tournament Results

#2 posting 5.10.2006

Today the Minneapolis Tournament began with the first round and quarterfinals completed.
Here are the results
SINGLES
FIRST ROUND
North #1 def Choua Vang Roosevelt #2 11-6, 8-11, 11-5

South #2 def Washburn #1 11-8, 11-9
South scored first 1-0, but Washburn scored twice on their opening serve, added three more on the second serve. Washburn led 8-4. South scored twice on their 6th and 7th serve to tie the game up at 8. After both teams sided out three times South finished off Washburn with three straight points on their 9th serve. All three of those points were hitting errors.
In game two Washburn took the early lead again at 6-0 after their fifth serve. After that South scored one point on their sixth serve. The game broke wide open on South's seventh serve when they scored eight straight points. Five of the points were due to South hitting errors. At this point the score was 9-6. Washburn closed to within on an ace 9-8. South had an ace to make it 10-8. It took South four more serves when South ended it on her 12th serve. Again it was a hitting error.

Houa Pha (Henry #2) def Martha Streng (Southwest #1) 11-0, 11-1
Pha scored three straight on her second serve. She sided out four straight times and on her fifth serve wrapped up the win with 7 straight points. Of the 11 points 5 were on Southwest hitting errors.
In game two it was more of the same. The only point for Southwest came on a fan of serve. Pha had service runs of 4 (5-1) and five (10-1). It took Pha three tries before SW had a hitting error to end it. SW provide four points on hitting errors.

Stacy Xiong Edison #2 def Astia Roper Southwest #2 8-11, 11-5, 11-1

Roosevelt #1 def Washburn #2 9-11, 11-6, 11-5

South #1 def Sassy Yang North #2 11-1, 11-1

QUARTERFINALS
Mai Vue Xiong (Edison #1) def North #1 11-0, 11-1

Houa Pha (Henry #2) def South #2 11-1, 11-4

Stacy Xiong (Edison #2) def Roosevelt #1

Mai Ku Moua (Henry #1) def South #1 11-4, 11-0
Mai Ku Moua opened the scoring first on her first service with two straight points. South hung around though with one point on her second serve and two more on her third. This tied the game at three. MKM on her fourth serve scored three times to make it 6-3. She ended the first game with four points on her 8th serve including a smash to end it at 11-4.
The second game lasted four services for MKM. She didn't start the scoring until her second serve with two points. On serve 3 MKM ripped the game open with 8 straight points. Only one of those points was a result of a South hitting error.

DOUBLES
FIRST ROUND
Roosevelt #1 def North #2 15-3, 15-8
Ala Xiong/Charlotte Rymanowski (Edison #2) def Vansan Sisomphane/Dani Sack (Washburn #1) 15-7, 15-3
South #1 def Southwest #2 15-9, 10-15, 15-12
See Vang/Chue Mi Thao (Edison #1) def Washburn #2 15-1, 15-0
South #2 def Pa Vue/Bao Vang (Roosevelt #2) 12-15, 15-9, 17-15
Lee Moua/Pa Kou Yang (Henry #2) def Vang Khang/Phoua Khang (North #1) 15-4, 15-7
QUARTERS
Mai Chia Yang/Yer Yang (Henry #1) def Roosevelt #1 15-1, 15-2

Ala Xiong/Charlotte Rymanowski (Edison #2) def South #1 15-3, 13-15, 15-7

See Vang/Chue Mi Thao (Edison #1) def South #2 15-5, 15-10
Edison started off with an ace in game one. South came back and scored three points. On Edison's next service they added three points to reclaim the lead 4-3. Two straight side outs by Edison brought service back to the Tommies. They added five more points in the next service and led 9-3. South added two points with hitting errors by Edison. Once Edison came back with serve they never gave it back. Edison added 6 points to finish game one 15-5.
South led in this contest 5-3 after each team had completed one service. Edison made a move in service two closing the gap to 7-6. Edison grabbed the lead for good at 10-7 after the third serve. Edison had 8 smashes in the last game. The last point came on a South hitting error.

Abby Behl/Lydia Kelly (Southwest #1) def Lee Moua/Pa Kou Yang (Henry #2) 15-10, 15-13

SEMIS TOMORROW
SINGLES
Mai Vue Xiong (Edison #1) vs Houa Pha (Henry #2)
Stacy Xiong (Edison #2) vs Mai Ku Moua (Henry #1)
DOUBLES
Mai Chia Yang/Yer Yang (Henry #1) vs Ala Xiong/Charlotte Rymanowski (Edison #2)
See Vang/Chue Mi Thao (Edison #1) vs Abby Behl/Lydia Kelly (Southwest #1)

Next up: Tomorrow with the finals for Minneapolis, and St. Paul

Vacaville Squeaks out a Victory

#1 posting 5.10.2006

MINNESOTA ACTION
Burnsville beat St. Paul Highland Park in a revenge match 4-3. Earlier in the year SPHP dumped Burnsville 5-2. The loss was SPHP's 8th in a row and second to a suburban team in two days.

ILLINOIS ACTION
In sections last week Leyden improved up in the standings to fourth. Here is their progression up the ladder from the River Grove Messenger http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/sports/current/rg/05-10-06-916640.html

CALIFORNIA ACTION
Vacaville was victorious over Vintage 8-7 thanks to Blanca Pina and Gaby Ruiz's win in a doubles match 17-15, 13-15, 15-11. Here is more from the Vacaville reporter http://www.thereporter.com/sports/ci_3801639


CANADIAN ACTION
Alberta
The provincal tournaments were held last weekend. Two students from Lacombe (Colin Hodgson and Crystal Watson) made it to the event, but finished 0-3 in their mixed doubles competition. Here is more from the Lacombe Globe http://www.lacombeglobe.com/story.php?id=229612

next up: tonight's recap of the Minneapolis city tournament

China Dominates Thomas/Uber Cup

#1 posting 5.9.2006

MINNESOTA ACTION
St. Paul City
#1 Harding continues to show they are the team to beat with a 6-1 win over Humboldt.
In the showcase game yesterday #2 Arlington was dropped by #3 Johnson 5-2 yesterday. It was Johnson's second win against Arlington.
Como Park won for the second time against Central 6-1.
Non Conference
Eden Prairie had a measure of revenge against St. Paul Highland Park 6-1. HP beat EP 4-3 earlier this year.

Both Minneapolis and St. Paul will hold their city championships on Wednesday and Thursday.
Minneapolis is at Edison starting at 4 pm.

CALIFORNIA ACTION
Cerritos HS received a bye in the upcoming CIF Southern Section playoffs. Here is the Long Beach Press Telegram with more seeding information http://www.presstelegram.com/sports/ci_3799991

THOMAS/UBER CUP WRAP
China
China showed its dominance with a double win. They are already making plans for 2008 in Jakarta. Not one player from China lost a match in the tournament. Here is the CRI story http://en.chinabroadcast.cn/301/2006/05/09/165@86443.htm
Here is a Radio New Zealand article on the Chinese focus on the Beijing Olympics http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/bulletins/sport/200605091053/2c48c4be
Indonesia
Taufik Hidayat, Olympic and world champ, did not have a great tournament. Indonesia did not have a great tournament. It appears Indonesia will be going with a youth movement after being dropped by China in the semis. Here is the Jakarta Post
http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailsports.asp?fileid=20060509.U01&irec=0

Next up: tomorrow after day one of the city tournaments.

Court Side: Henry/South

#1 posting 5.8.2006

Court Side: Henry vs South

This is better late than never.

Henry beat South 7-0 last Thursday. This salved the wounds suffered against Edison on Tuesday ruining their plans of an undefeated season.

Henry swept the singles and doubles, but there were a couple of matches that went the distance--kind of a Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde type experience. Houa Pha at second singles, and the doubles team at #1 Yer Yang and Mai Chia Yang; and Nong Vue and Mee Vang each went the distance. Each won the first game. Pha and Yang/Yang, after crunching their opponents in the first game, struggled mightly in the second frame. Pha and Yang/Yang put on a tour de force in game three. Third doubles Vue/Vang had tight contests all the way with the widest gap three points.

SINGLES
1) Mai Ku Moua (H) def. Wanda 11-0, 11-6
2) Houa Pha (H) def. Ma 11-1, 9-11, 11-2
3) Lisa Thao (H) def. Karly 11-6, 11-7
4) Mai Vang Vang (H) def. Jennifer 11-8, 11-0

DOUBLES
1) Yer Yang/Mai Chia Yang (H) def. Kristina/Mai Thao 15-1, 10-15, 15-2
2) Lee Moua/Pakou Yang (H) def. Thu/Gao Nou 15-10, 15-4
3) Nong Vue/Mee Vang (H) def. Karen/Katherine 17-14, 13-15, 17-15

The Minneapolis and St. Paul conferences will hold their tournaments this Wednesday and Thursday. Edison will host the Minneapolis tournament starting at 4 pm Wednesday.

Next up: tomorrow afternoon

Harding Still #1

#1 posting 5.7.2006

MINNESOTA RANKINGS
1. St. Paul Harding 14-0
2. St. Paul Arlington 10-4
3. St. Paul Johnson 8-5
4. St. Paul Como Park 6-8
5. Eden Prairie 5-6
6. St. Paul Central 6-6
7. Burnsville 7-6
8. St. Paul Humboldt 4-9
9. St. Paul Highland Park 5-9
10. Minneapolis Edison 8-3
11. Minneapolis Henry 11-2
12. Minneapolis Southwest 5-7
13. Minneapolis Roosevelt 6-9
14. Minneapolis South 3-7
15. Minneapolis North 1-9
16. Minneapolis Washburn 0-8

ILLINOIS STATE TOURNAMENT
Wheeling and Prospect of the Mid Suburban League get the full treatment for their state tournament prospects from the Des Plaines Journal http://www.journal-topics.com/sports/06/sp060505.1.html
Lincoln-Way Central is sending four players including #1 singles Emily Sawin. This is from the Star newspapers http://www.starnewspapers.com/star/spsports/smix/071sx8.htm

PHILIPPINES
Diosan Abangan won both the singles (she beat her sister) and doubles (with her sister) in the JVC Regional. More from the Sun Star
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/dav/2006/05/07/sports/davao.s.abangan.shines.in.jvc.badminton.html

Next up: tomorrow afternoon

China Takes 5th Straight Uber Cup

#1 posting 5.6.2006

MINNESOTA ACTION
St. Paul
Arlington beat up on Central 6-1. It was second place Arlington's fourth straight win and avenges a 2-5 loss to Central earlier.
#1 undefeated Harding pushed their score against Johnson 6-1. Earlier they had beaten their East Side rival 5-2. Johnson's six game winning streak was snapped.
Non Conference
St. Paul Como Park avenged and earlier loss to 4-3 Burnsville with a solid 5-2 win.


CHINA WINS UBER CUP
China swept the Netherlands 3-0 to win their fifth straight Uber Cup. Zhang Ning won the first singles competition 21-18, 19-21, 21-18. Here is more from the People's Daily http://english.people.com.cn/200605/06/eng20060506_263516.html
Here are some photos of the celebration from Xinhua http://english.people.com.cn/200605/06/eng20060506_263519.html

SCORING CHANGE
The International Badminton Federation has changed its scoring system to a point on every serve. Currently the only way to score was when a player was serving. Now it is more like volleyball. First to 21 will be the standard now, not the 11 for females currently in place. Here is more from Badders (the independent voice of badminton) http://www.badders.com/news/item/774/New-scoring-system-for-badminton

Next up: tomorrow with MN rankings

Illinois Section Results

#1 posting 5.5.2006

ILLINOIS ACTION
Here are the winners in the Illinois sections. These players advance to the Illinois State Tournament. The list is from the Chicago Sports section of the Chicago Tribune. You may need to register to read http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/highschool/cs-badmintonsectionals,0,5744840.htmlstory?coll=cs-highschool-utility
West Aurora's double team of Jenny Nguyen and Courtney Brooks will take a 36-1 record into the state tournament. Brooks was 4th in last year's tournament with another partner. This is Nguyen's first trip. The Beacon News fills in the blanks http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/sports/2_2_AU05_BADMINTON_S1.asp
Lindsey Gibbel, Prospect, is adding space to her trophy case. Last night she added section championship to her awards. Here is the Daily Herald with more http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/story.asp?id=185512

MINNESOTA ACTION
Burnsville lost to Arlington 5-2 on Monday and beat Washburn 7-0 on Wednesday. Burnsville took the first two singles against Arlington, but did not take any more. Here is the This Week paper with the action http://www.thisweek-online.com/2006/May/5badminton.html
Minneapolis
Edison, on the heels of their upset of Henry on Tuesday, beat Southwest 6-1.
Henry rebounded with a 7-0 sweep of South. Both Edison and Henry tied for the city championship.
St. Paul
Humboldt got back on the winning track for the first time since April 11 with a 6-1 win over Highland Park. Earlier HP beat Humboldt 5-2. HP has lost six in a row.
Johnson squeaked a win over Como Park 4-3. It was Johnson's fifth win in a row. Earlier Johnson won over Como Park by the identical score.
Non conference
Burnsville picked up win number seven with a sweep of Minneapolis Roosevelt 7-0. It is Burnsville's sixth win against a Minneapolis school, and fifth sweep.

THOMAS/UBER CUP
China is dominating both sides of the Thomas/Uber cup. The women will face the Netherlands for the Uber Cup championship. China will play Denmark or Malaysia for the Thomas Cup championship. Here is the Ohmy News from South Korea http://english.ohmynews.com/articleview/article_view.asp?menu=f10600&no=290083&rel_no=1
China dominated Indonesia 3-0 in the Thomas Cup. Here is the Xinhua press release on the match http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-05/05/content_4511591.htm
Here is the official site for the Thomas/Uber cup http://www.yonex-tuc.com/english/index.html

Next up: tomorrow afternoon, coming Sunday MN Rankings

Illinois Begins Section Play

#1 posting 5.4.2006

ILLINOIS ACTION
West Aurora's doubles team of Jenny Nguyen and Courtney Brooks were undefeated until the DuPage Valley tournament. Naperville Central's Amy Huang and Alina Ahsieh beat them 17-14, 8-15, 17-16. Now the pair are preparing for the sections. Here is the story from the Beacon News http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/sports/2_2_AU04_BADMINTON_S1.asp
The Fremd duo of Judy Hsieh and Sarah Hong won the MSL title last Friday beating Wheeling's Kate Flanagan and Sam Diesel 15-4, 15-11. But they won't be together in the sections. Why? read on with the Rolling Meadows Review http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/sports/current/rm/05-04-06-911523.html
Glenbrook South won the Central Suburban title for the first time. Gloria and Christine Kim provided Glenbrook South with it's only first place finish. Read about the rest of the meet here in the Glenview Announcements http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/sports/current/gv/05-04-06-907687.html
A pair of Elk Grove singles players got together to claim third place in the MSL tournament. Aya Uehara and Nozomi Nakamura beat Tiffany Compton and Yeji Chun of Schaumberg 15-5, 15-6. For more here is the Hoffman Estates Review http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/sports/current/he/05-04-06-908940.html
Lockport is looking to send more than one to the State Badminton tournament. Here is how they plan on doing it according to the Herald Times http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/heraldnews/sports/4_2_JO04_BAD_S1.asp


THOMAS/UBER CUP ACTION
The Chinese women beat Germany to advance to the finals of the Uber Cup. Olympic champion Zhang Ning defeated a Chinese German Xu Huaiwen 21-17, 21-14. Here is more from the Xinhua press release. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-05/04/content_4508707.htm
Chinese Taipai also won beating South Korea in the quarters. Here is the English Eastday acount http://english.eastday.com/eastday/englishedition/sports/userobject1ai2018002.html this is the South Korean perspective from the Korean Times (this article also tells about the men's loss in the quarters) http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/sports/200605/kt2006050418123211640.htm
Indonesia beat Japan in the quarterfinals of the Thomas cup as recounted in the People's Daily http://english.people.com.cn/200605/04/eng20060504_262969.html

Next up Tomorrow Afternoon

China Rolls; Illinois Districts to begin

#1 posting 5.3.2006

MINNESOTA ACTION
Minneapolis
Edison knocked Henry off the unbeaten ranks in the city with a 5-2 win. Read more on court Side: Edison/Henry posted yesterday.
Roosevelt won its second match against North this year 6-1. Previously they swept North.
St. Paul
Harding continues to be unblemished with a 5-2 win over Highland Park. Harding has 13 straight wins, and its second 5-2 decision in St. Paul. HP has lost three straight by scores of 5-2, and it was their 5th overall.
Arlington beat Humboldt 5-2. Arlington has three straight wins. Humboldt has 8 straight losses.

ILLINOIS ACTION
Downers Grove is looking for their third title in four years. A big reason for their success is Kim Jaros. Here is the Chicago Sun Times with more. http://www.suntimes.com/output/prep/cst-spt-bad03.html
Leyden finished fourth in the WSC conference tournament. They finished fifth the year before. More from the Franklin Park Herald-Journal http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/sports/current/fp/05-03-06-908972.html
Illinois Districts begin this week. Here is the link to the IHSA badminton page. http://www.ihsa.org/activity/bad/index.htm

THOMAS/UBER CUP ACTION
China continues to roll through competiton in Japan. Here is the Xinhua report on the men's win over England and the women's win over Singapore http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-05/03/content_4505235.htm This is the English version from Reuters http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=sportsNews&storyID=2006-05-03T150638Z_01_L03691773_RTRUKOC_0_UK-BADMINTON.xml
Denmark beat India on the men's side. Here is the India Daily with a story http://www.indiadaily.com/editorial/8424.asp

Court Side: Edison/Henry

#2 posting 5.2.2006

Edison 5, Henry 2

Edison threw a wrench in Henry's plan to win the Minneapolis conference outright with a 5-2 win at Edison this afternoon. It was Henry's first conference loss, and second overall this year. Edison broke a seven game sweep streak by Henry.
Edison swept the singles and took 2nd doubles to avenge an earlier 7-0 sweep at Henry. The closest match was at 2nd singles as Stacey Xiong went to extra points to beat Houa Pha 13-12 twice. Fourth singles went three games and was extremely close as See Vang won game one 11-9, and game three 13-11.
Edison's second doubles team was previously first doubles in the early match. They lost in the first doubles earlier in the year 15-11, 15-12.
In the first single match Mai Vue Xiong broke a 6-6 tie in the first game. She took a 8-6 lead with a drive for 7 and a smash for 8. In game two the game was tied at four when Mai Vue Xiong picked up single points on her 5th and 7th serve. It was the 8th serve where the game broke open. MVX picked up four straight points--on a hitting error, two drives, and a deep shot by Mai Ku Moua. MVX's last point was an ace.

Henry has one week to get ready for the city championships.

SINGLES
1. Mai Vue Xiong (E) def. Mai Ku Moua 15-9, 15-4
2. Stacey Xiong (E) def Houa Pha 13-12, 13-12
3. Chue Thao (E) def Mai Vang Vang 11-6, 11-6
4. See Vang (E) def Mai Pa Vang 11-9, 5-11, 13-11
DOUBLES
1. Mai Chia Yang/Yer Yang (H) def Yer Vue/Fabia 15-4, 15-4
2. Ala Xiong/Charlotte Rymanowski (E) def Lee Moua/Pa Kou Yang 15-7, 15-7
3. Nong/Me (H) def Pa/Der Lee 15-8, 15-6

Next up: tomorrow afternoon

Johnson Picks up 5th in a row

#1 posting 5.2.2006

MINNESOTA ACTION
St. Paul Conference
Arlington beat Highland Park 5-2. Arlington has two wins over HP this season. HP is 1-7 the last eight matches.
Como Park shut out Humboldt 7-0. CP has two wins over Humboldt. It was Como's first shut out of the year. Humboldt is 3-8, but one of those wins was against Patrick Henry, the leader in Minneapolis.
Johnson beat Central 5-2. Johnson took a bit of revenge on Central since SPC beat Johnson in the first match up 4-3. Johnson is 7-1 and has won their last 5 matches.
Non Conference
Harding beat Eden Prairie 6-1. Last time Harding swept EP. This match also ended a four game sweep streak by Harding. Harding is still undefeated.

OLYMPICS APPROVE QUALIFICATIONS
The International Olympic Committee approved the International Badminton Federation qualification plans. Here is the legalese from the meeting from the USA Badminton press release http://www.usabadminton.org/page.asp?Page=News&iID=324

CANADIAN ACTION
Prince Edward Island
PEI held their provincal championships last weekend Elysia Atkinson of Colonal Gray won both the singles title and doubles title as well. Here are all the results courtesy of the Guardian which covers PEI like the dew http://www.theguardian.pe.ca/index.cfm?sid=2451&sc=3

THOMAS/UBER CUP ACTION
New Zealand is done on both the men's and women's side. Here with the news is TV New Zealand http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/536641/709346

Next up: tomorrow afternoon

England, Indonesia, China Advance in Thomas Cup

#1 posting 5.1.2006

THOMAS CUP
England beat South Africa and now will face China in the Thomas Cup. This is the Reuters news wire on the event http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=sportsNews&storyID=2006-05-01T143707Z_01_T165386_RTRUKOC_0_UK-BADMINTON.xml&archived=False
New Zealand lost to Indonesia and virtually knocks them out of the championship bracket. Here is the New Zealand Herald with their story http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=4&ObjectID=10379677 You heard from the NZ side, now Indonesia's view from the Malaysian Star http://thestar.com.my/sports/story.asp?file=/2006/4/30/sports/14113224&sec=sports
China continued its domination with a convincing 5-0 win over Germany. Here is the Calcutta Telegraph with more http://www.telegraphindia.com/1060501/asp/sports/story_6167702.asp

Next up tomorrow afternoon with Minnesota results.

Harding Unblemished

#1 posting 4.30.2006

MN RANKINGS
Harding remains undefeated and remains the team to beat in Minnesota. The St. Paul city fills out most of the top 10 with Burnsville and Eden Prairie crashing in at 6 and 5. Minneapolis' lone representative is Henry at 10.
1. St. Paul Harding 11-0 on the road three times this week
2. St. Paul Central 6-4 hosts Johnson on Monday
3. St. Paul Arlington 7-4 hosts Central on Friday
4. St. Paul Johnson 6-4 hosts Harding on Friday
5. Eden Prairie 5-5 hosts Harding on Monday
6. Burnsville 5-5
7. St. Paul Highland Park 5-6 1-6 last seven games
8. St. Paul Como Park 4-7
9. St. Paul Humboldt 3-7
10. Minneapolis Henry 10-1 only loss this year was to Humboldt
11. Mpls Edison 6-3 hosts Henry on Tuesday
12. Mpls Southwest 5-6
13. Mpls Roosevelt 5-8
14. Mpls South 3-6
15. Mpls North 1-8
16. Mpls Washburn 0-8

ILLINOIS ACTION
Lockport won the SW Suburban blue title while Andrew took the SWS red title last week. Here is the Star News with more numbers http://www.starnewspapers.com/star/spsports/smix/301sx8.htm
Naperville Central won the DuPage Valley conference tournament. In Illinois you can play both singles and doubles. Here are the results as reported by the Beacon News http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/sports/2_2_AU30_BADMINTON_S1.asp

THOMAS/UBER CUP
India beat Germany 3-2 in pool play. They now advance to the prequarters against New Zealand on May 1. Here is the Calcutta Telegraph with more on the match http://www.telegraphindia.com/1060430/asp/sports/story_6164046.asp
China swept Germany and now wait for the winners of England or South Africa. Here is the Zee News agency with more http://www.zeenews.com/znnew/articles.asp?aid=291976&ssid=93&sid=SPO

Next up: tomorrow afternoon

Harding Rolls, USA Loses at Thomas Cup

#1 posting 4.29.2oo6

MINNESOTA ACTION
St. Paul City
Central beat Highland Park 5-2. It was Central's second win off Highland this year. The first time it was a 4-3 contest. Highland is 1-6 their last 7 games.
#1 Harding continued to roll with a 7-0 shut out of Como Park. It is Harding's 7th shut out of the year and 4th in a row. Como earlier in the year took a game off Harding. It was the first time all year Como had been shut out.
Non Conference
St. Paul Arlington beat Burnsville 5-2. Arlington is 3-0 against non conference opponents this year. Burnsville is 1-4 against St. Paul City teams.

ILLINOIS ACTION
Mallory Thompson, DeKalb was a volleyballer, but started to play badminton as a junior. Here is the DeKalb Daily Chronicle about her progression in badminton http://www.daily-chronicle.com/articles/2006/04/29/sports/asports02.txt
DeKalb finished 4th in the Upstate Eight tournament held recently. Again here is the DeKalb Daily Chronicle with more http://www.daily-chronicle.com/articles/2006/04/29/sports/asports03.txt

THOMAS/UBER CUP ACTION
From Japan
New Zealand
The NZ women shut out South Africa 5-0. Next is host Japan. Indonesia beat the men 5-0. Here is more about the NZ teams from Newstalk
http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/newsdetail1.asp?storyID=94713
Not everyone likes the scoring format change. Here is the complaints made by the Chinese as reported in the Malay Mail http://www.mmail.com.my/Current_News/MM/Saturday/Sport/20060429110302/Article/index_html
More about the IBF 21 point system, this time from the New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/nst/Saturday/Sport/20060429080048/Article/index_html

The United States does have a mens team at the tournament, but you may have to read the fine print to find it. Here is the Ohmy News from Korea with a Thomas/Uber Cup report http://english.ohmynews.com/articleview/article_view.asp?menu=f10600&no=288835&rel_no=1
Here is more on the American side, but the story is from the Malaysian Star. The main part of the article is about Mohd Hafiz Hashim's play. http://thestar.com.my/sports/story.asp?file=/2006/4/29/sports/14106580&sec=sports

Next up: Tomorrow afternoon MN Rankings

Henry Wins Again; China Rolls in Thomas Cup

#1 posting 4.28.2006

MINNESOTA ACTION
Burnsville has been hot lately. They swept Minneapolis' second place team Edison 7-0. Here is the details in the Burnsville This Week paper http://www.thisweek-online.com/2006/April/28badminton.html

Minneapolis results from yesterday
Roosevelt 6, Washburn 1
Henry 7, Southwest 0
St. Paul
Johnson defeated Humboldt 6-1. This is Johnson's fourth straight win. They previously lost to Humboldt 4-3. That was Humboldt's last win. They are 0-6 since.

Here is the Minneapolis Henry/Southwest game from Thursday won by Henry 7-0. It was Henry's 9th shutout on the year, all at the expense of Minneapolis schools. I will fill in the xs and ?s when given updated information

SINGLES
1. Mai Ku Moua (H) def. x 11-3, 11-1 This is Moua's 7th straight win. She has given up only 9 points total in the last four matches against North (0), Washburn (1), Roosevelt (4), and Southwest (4).
2. Houa Pa (H) def. x 11-8, 11-2
3. Mai Vang Vang (H) def. x 11-10, 11-8
4. Mai Pa Vang (H) def. x 11-3, 11-0

DOUBLES
1. Mai Chia Yang/Yer Yang (H) def. x 13-15, 15-7, 15-8
2. Lee Moua/Pa Kou Yang (H) def. x 15-11, 15-2
3. Nong Vue/Mee Vang (H) def. x 15-5, 15-9

THOMAS CUP RESULTS
China defeats India 5-0. Lin Dan won at first singles in three sets 21-8, 21-23, 21-11. Here is more From the Hindu http://www.hindu.com/2006/04/29/stories/2006042903391700.htm
Here is some more detail from Daily News and Analysis http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1026567 Now a Chinese perspective from Xinhua http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-04/28/content_4488115.htm

UBER CUP
The Chinese women and men are both favored for their respective cups (Thomas/men, Uber/women) Here is the Pakistan Daily Times with more on the Chinese women http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2006%5C04%5C28%5Cstory_28-4-2006_pg2_15

Next up: Tomorrow afternoon. MN Rankings on Sunday

Illinois Cornucopia

#1 posting 4.27.2006

ILLINOIS ACTION
Lockport did well in doubles in the SW Suburban Blue tournament. Jen and Janine Henry, the #1 doubles, now have a record of 26-5 after a 15-3, 15-6 win over Sandburg. Here is more information from the Herald News http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/heraldnews/sports/4_2_JO27_LOCKBAD_S1.asp

Stevenson beat Glenbrook South last week with wins at 5th singles by Yankun Guo and Katie Lange at 8th singles for an 8-7 win. Stevenson is 11-1. For more on Stevenson's week here is the Deerfield Review article http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/sports/current/de/04-27-06-902188.html

Elk Grove is counting on its doubles teams to pull through this weekend. Aya Uehara, first singles and a Japanese exchange student, will be unable to compete Saturday due to an exchange student meeting. Here is the Elk Grove Times with more http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/sports/current/eg/04-27-06-903462.html

Deerfield is 5-2 this year and is tops in CSL wins with 74. Here is more from the Deerfield Review http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/sports/current/de/04-27-06-902000.html

Schaumberg is the CSL West champs. For more on the rise to the top read the Elk Grove Times http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/sports/current/eg/04-27-06-899470.html

New Trier is in the hunt for a Central Suburban League title. Here is what Coach Deb Ofcky has in store this week end as read in the Glencoe News http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/sports/current/gl/04-27-06-903767.html

Wheeling has been rolling to a MSL title this year. They won the Blue & Gold tournament last weekend. Read more in the Wheeling Countryside. http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/sports/current/wh/04-27-06-902573.html

Christine and Gloria Kim, Glenbrook South's doubles team, won the Hinsdale South ABCD Invitational title last Saturday. The Glenview Announcements has more details http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/sports/current/gv/04-27-06-900340.html

Maine South is getting ready for the CSL tournament this weekend and state the next weekend. Here is the Park Ridge Herald Advocate with the goings on http://www.pioneerlocal.com/cgi-bin/ppo-story/sports/current/pr/04-27-06-903245.html

MINNESOTA ACTION
St. Paul City
#1 Harding defeated Arlington 7-0 (see yesterday's story). Central edged Humboldt 4-3, Como Park took some revenge on Highland Park 6-1. HP beat Como earlier in the year 4-3.
Minneapolis City
Southwest turned the tables on Roosevelt 4-3. Earlier this year Roosevelt won 5-2.
Non Conference
St. Paul Johnson beat Eden Prairie 4-3. It was Johnson's third win in a row.

THOMAS CUP HISTORY 1964
Here is the background of a Thomas Cup that Japan hosted back in 1964. Indonesia won the title, but there was controversy. Here is the New Straits Times with the details http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/nst/Thursday/Sport/20060427090322/Article/index_html

THOMAS CUP TRAINING
Get Serious
Malaysia's coaches face what all coaches at times face--players that aren't focused. Here is the Star from Malaysia with the training leading up to the Thomas Cup http://thestar.com.my/sports/story.asp?file=/2006/4/27/sports/14079581&sec=sports

Next up: Tomorrow