V over HP

Central 5, Highland Park 2. This meet was dominated by the underclassmen. Our 5 wins all came from Juniors (Doua, & Da, Kelly & Mai Tong, and Kia) and Sophomores (Melissa & Nitsan and Mai Kou). Three of our five victories went to 3 games and Kia's game went to 24 points. Dawn lost a close third game 20-22. Even though the score does not look like it, this was a very close meet.

Player of the match: Mai Kou Lor - she shows great poise as a 10th grader at an away meet. She always seems very relaxed but yesterday she played more aggressively.

Good things:

+ returned slams well

+ A net violation was called by us (nice wor Kia)

+ Triangle offense-drops to both sides, deep to the backhand (Dawn especially)

Work on:

-need to attack the sides

-avoid hitting your backhand

-serves were rushed

-use of the front of the court - to many shots at the back

During break, we really want to work on returning hard shots short. Watch your grip - keep it loose.

JV also posted a close 4-3 win yesterday. All four singles players (Ka Lia, Laura, Sue & Natalie) won. All four matches went to 3 games! Those long games test your conditioning.

Spring break practice schedule:

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday: 8-10am.

Reinhardt's 2 boys will be there Tuesday and Thursday. They need to work on their drop shots as wel....

First conference match

Johnson 6, Central 1

Johnson was better prepared than we were. They anticipated shots better and positioned themselves on their court for returns more consistently. Granted, when playing the first way match of the year people tend to play with less confidence and therefore some things that you normally do instinctively may require more conscience thought. But at the same time, you can not expect to be able to play hard on game days unless you push yourself with as much intensity at practice. Vince Lombardi, one of the best coaches of all time, said "the Dictionary is the only place that success comes before work"

Positives:

+ Attacked backhands on clears

+ Set up opponent for winners/slams

+ good team support (praise was specific)

+ anxious to work on the court

Areas of improvement:

-hit then immediately move into position for next shot

-clears and drops to the corners

-singles may need to play boring games - keep them in the back

-doubles serves and attacking of serves

Let the games begin...

Tuesday we travel to Johnson to take on the Governors. We have had some very competitive meets with Johnson last year and this one should be no different. Conference games tend to be more a little more tense as both schools are looking for a conference title. Remember to have fun and play smart. Also, when you get to a new gym, practice calling birds out during warm-ups to get a "feeling" for the layout of the courts.

As a team, you have done a great jog getting yourself ready for what promises to be a challenging, but entertaining conference season. There was an error reporting an early release day on Tuesday. It is a regular school day.

There will not be any ranking-challenges this week....

First Meet

Central 4, Eden Prairie 3. Wins were posted by Kia Vang, Mai Kou Lor, Doua Thao & Da Chang and Melissa Vang & Nitsan Chang. This was the first varsity match for Mai Kou, Melissa & Nitsan and they posted victories. Nice work.

Dawn had a great match. It went 3 games and the third game went down to the wire. Dawn lost a heartbreaker 21-23. The game had long rallies and great shots by both players.

Good things we saw:

+ moved the bird toward the corners on deep shots

+ attacked the backhand

+not hitting birds that were out

Things to work on:

-left to right movement on shorts

-height of your short shots (especially when you were at the net)

-serves

We still have much to work on and many positions to determine.

Next game is Tuesday at Johnson. Students are finished with school at 12 noon on that day so we will have a location for players to hang around until we leave at 2:15.

Initial Rankings

We got our uniforms on Monday so that must mean a match is coming up. Tuesday we play Eden Prairie at 3:15. Reminder, due to a scheduling conflict, we need to be out of the gym by 4:30. So I apologize, but we can't get everyone a match. The current line-up (with who is playing Tuesday) is listed below. This was a very competitive tournament. It is wonderful to see such a passionate team battle for position.

You were ranked based on the following criteria:

• who you beat
• who you lost to
• how close the games were
• number of games you played

Also, keep in mind, these line-ups may change prior to our first conference game next week.

(I did not have a current roster so I could not look up all of your last names....)

RED = be ready to play vs Eden Prairie

SINGLES

1. Dawn Vang
2. Aranya Thao
3. Kia Vang
4. Mai Kou Lor
5. KaLia Xiong
6. Nancy Xiong
7. Natalie Kramer
8. Mai Kou Thao
9. Hannah Johnson
10. Ratih Sutrisno
11. Angelina Vang
12. Amie Thao(?)
13. Natalya Brown
14. Nanda Sutrisno
15. Maxine Thao
16. Karla Neff
17. Natalie (?)
18. Mai Teng (?)
19. Padee Vang
20. Molly Vang
21. Yia Vue
22. Tia Matthews
23. Katherine Tang
24. Monica Ngo

DOUBLES

1. Doua Thao / Da Chang
2. Melissa Vang / Nitsan Chang
3. Kelly Thao / Laura Lor
4. Maria DeLaundreau / Kris Neff
5. Sue Lee / Mai Tong Yang
6. Mai Xiong / Panny Xiong
7. Bao Lee / Elizabeth Yang
8. Samantha Roberts / Tiffany Yang
9. Sherry Khottavongsa/ Molly O’Connor
10. Mai Yer Xiong / Loulia Wang
11. Ia Xiong / Ong Xiong
12. Ayla Vang / Va Thao
13. Mee Xiong / Chai Yang
14. Pajsua Vang / MaiChou Vang
15. Chai-Ja-lab Yang / Blia Xiong
16. Pa Xiong Vang/ Jacy Yang
17. La Yang / Jennifer Yang
18. Mai Tong Lee / Pang Chang
19. Lisa Vang/ Janise Nelson

Please let me know if there are mistakes, or omissions

Also, feel free to make some congratulatory comments by clicking on "comments" below.

Week 3

Game at home, Tuesday vs. Eden Prairie. We will be getting our uniforms prior to the game.

Try and get to bed early and eat a good lunch. Seniors should bring snacks.

Week 2

Sure we are only a week into the season but things are getting busy quickly. This week we need to assign lockers, get uniforms and, most importantly, play for rank. Those of you that have not yet decided if you are going to play singles or doubles need to by Wednesday.

This should be a very interesting position tourney as there are quite a few positions on Varsity and Junior Varsity to be determined. Mr. Brigger and I are very curious to who earns them. If you are nervous about your matches, remember that you should not be disappointed if you try your hardest. Then again, we all like to win...

Also remember that this 'position tourney' just the initial determination of rank and there are many opportunities to challenge up (or fall down) in the rankings as the year goes on.

One more thing - If you take a look at our badminton calendar you might notice that there is an event at Arlington this Saturday. Dean Schoppe is part of the US Olympic Badminton team and is offering his expertise for free to the St. Paul Badminton Teams. It is something you will not want to miss. Come ready to play! It is from 8-11.

First game is next Tuesday at home against the Eden Prairie Eagles.

Intro Week 2

Hey all - a couple of things I need to clarify:

• Practice on Friday is at 6-7am. Do your best to be there. There will be no practice after school.

• All students have Monday off of school. We will have practice at 2-4pm. Be there.

• Next week we will have many things to do: Get uniforms, get lockers and play for position rankings. You need to: (1) Get all forms & money in (2) Get ready to play many games next week

First week of practice

The first week we are working on getting a nice 'touch' on the short shots and good form when hitting the deep shots. Remember, nothing is more important than proper technique.

Remember, Friday we are having practice at 6am. No practice after school.