Badminton beats Milpitas in first league game of the season

Lisa Zhang

Varsity badminton starts out league season strong with their first win against Milpitas

Varsity one mixed doubles: Seniors Angela Gu and Alex Shung beat Stephanie Hong and Issac Wang, 15-11, 15-10

Seniors Angela Gu and Alex Shung prepare to receive Milpitas sophomore Stephanie Hong’s serve. The two played against Hong and senior Issac Wang, winning the game 15-11, 15-10. Photo courtesy of Laura Liu.

Gu and Shung started the game off strong but were closely trailed by Hong and Wang. There were numerous strategic drives and pushing by both sides, but eventually Gu and Shung took the first game 15-11.The second game consisted more smashes and drops from both sides. Gu and Shung were more successful in their smashes during the second game, as a few of the smashes during the first game had hit the net.“There were some shots that I framed, and it just went flying out,” Shung said. “[Overall, we just need] more training–at one point, it’s just consistency.”

Seniors Brandon Tran and Evan Lin push back a serve. The two played varsity one boys doubles and lost to senior Larry Chan and junior Louis Tsai, 4-15, 5-15. Photo courtesy of Laura Liu.

Varsity one boys doubles: Seniors Brandon Tran and Evan Lin lose to Larry Chan and Louis Tsai, 4-15, 5-15Tran and Lin were not able to match Chan and Tsai, as they fell behind quickly as the Milpitas doubles team dominated the match. Chang and Tsai took the first game 4-15 and the second 5-15, but not after Tran and Lin put up a good fight in the second game in their attempt to attack the holes in Milpitas’ plays.“We played decently, but we just kept hitting things out [today],” Tran said. “We [want to improve on] setting each other up for shots better in the future.”Varsity one girls doubles: Seniors Michelle Yang and Elaine Tang beat Irene Chiang and Sarah Liaw, 9-15, 17-15, 15-9Yang and Tang came off with a slow start due to lots of mis-hits from the frame and extended the rallies between the two teams. As a result, Yang and Tang lost their first game 9-15 to Chiang and Liaw, but were able to turn the match around in the next two games.The two began their comeback in the second game, where Yang and Tang began to smash the shuttlecock more often throughout the match. They were able to put up a good fight in the second game to win the game 17-15 as both teams were evenly matched. Yang and Tang continued their momentum into the third game, in which they took easily 15-9 to win the match.Although the game was a close win, Yang and Tang both believe they could have done better and kept the match at two games.“A lot of our mistakes weren’t forced,” Tang said. “I guess [we] just need practice hitting so we’re more used to hitting different shots.”MVHS will be playing their second league game against Lynbrook on March 24 at Lynbrook High School.