Setting the stage for CIF, the Diamond Bar High School badminton team started their season off strong, winning their first match 18-3 against Redlands High School on March 1. Their overall season record is 7-2. 

The team has continued to breeze successfully through every competition so far, beating Rowland 17-4 and Chino Hills 17-4. Despite the recent victories, however, the team must still train to overcome the remaining physical and mental challenges. 

“I still train for badminton but it is hard to manage my time with studying and other academic activities,” junior Rita Mei said. “I want to work on building more strength and endurance to play longer games with high accuracy without getting tired.”

With this growth mindset, Mei is also working to improve her agility to see success in difficult matches. 

In addition to individual goals, the team also has a collective goal to win CIF. To reach their goal, the team has committed to team captain-led varsity practices where they focus on mastering the basics and techniques of badminton. Although the team has many talented players, the gap between the skill levels of the boys and girls teams still needs to be bridged.

“There is more than double the amount of strong girls compared to boys that contribute to the accumulative score at each meet,” junior captain Emily Liu said. 

Nonetheless, the Brahmas are overall triumphant with their meets. The players’ strengths include a positive mindset, especially during league games. With team spirit high, everyone is determined to give their best effort in every match to contribute to another win. 

“Overall, the team is strong,” junior captain Joshua Wijaya said. “Arguably, the best and most important element about the team is that everyone has the desire to do their best to win the games, which is crucial to our success as a team and their individual success as an athlete.”

The Brahmas will play their next match against Chino High on April 18.