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April 19, 2012
Skyline’s badminton team crushes Mission
11
Trojans beat the Saints for the second time
standard scoring to 15 with setting allowed. The object is to win the rallies, score the most points, and win the game. In half-court singles, the shots are quicker because the luxury of the cross court has been eliminated. In doubles, the same process applies, except that the game goes a little faster because there is another player for each side. Players on each side take turns serving after the shuttlecock has hit the ground. Fosberg is hoping that the team comes back from a few losses that they had previously by improving on their positioning and communication skills. “Our obvious problem is how fast the girls move their feet to get to the shuttlecock,” Fosberg said. “I’m sure they’ll do better next game, but we’re pretty satisfied with this win.”
Kimberly Murti
skyline view Sports Editor
The Skyline Trojans have done it yet again: They sent Mission College home with another loss after the women’s badminton game on April 17. The Trojans won handily, 14-7. Tuesday night, Kathleen Reyes, a key player on the women’s badminton team, worked her way to bringing them to victory with the help of their star player, Anna Nguyen, who has played well consistently every game, even with the losses they’ve sustained. Reyes agrees that the team plays well together: “We’ve improved so much these past couple of games, and we take each game seriously no matter how much we’ve won or lost. It’s important to us, or me personally, to do my best and maintain a consistency so that the rest of my team can depend on me to do a good job every game that I play in.” Coach Jan Fosberg supports Reyes’ statement, saying, “It isn’t the amount of games that we’ve been winning, but the amount of effort that each player brings to the table. Their skills are all very
Jonathan Chan/The Skyline View
Kayla Garcia and teammate Kathleen Reyes prepare for the serve from Mission College. unique, and each player is good at something that helps the team progress as a whole.”
Half-court singles is a game wherein the players use only one half of the standard singles court
from the center line to the inside alley line, and all the way to the back singles line. Games use
International Talent Anna Nguyen
Hard work shows practice makes perfect Diane Thao
skyline view Entertainment Editor
Court divided between a thin five-foot net. Scrambling all over the court to reach the birdie. Thin racquets swinging. Quick dives made to prevent elimination. Swinging back with precise strokes against your opponent in hopes that the birdie hits the ground, ending a round and earning a point. This racquet sport is known as badminton. Badminton enthusiast Anna Nguyen plays for Skyline’s badminton team. Badminton is a sport Nguyen used to enjoy in her hometown, Khánh Hòa, Vietnam, and she continues to play to this day. This is the 26-year-old kinesiology major’s first semester in college, and already she conquers the sport by leading as number 1 from Skyline. Ever since moving from the south-central province of Vietnam to the United States 10 years ago, Nguyen has always been working. Nguyen’s family of eight came to San Francisco but later moved to New Mexico. Because the weather was too extreme for Nguyen, she and her oldest brother returned to San Francisco. Nguyen is very thankful to her brother: “I was able to go back to school because of the support my brother that I live with gave me.” But going to school was not made easy for Nguyen. “Ever since I came here I worked,” Nguyen said. “It’s hard with both work and school.”
Jonathan Chan/The Skyline View
Anna Nguyen gets ready for the doubles match against Mission College. Nguyen works five days a week. This work schedule interferes with her badminton schedule, but there is nothing she can do about it. “The coach tries to work around my work schedule, but I can’t miss work,” Nguyen said. “I need the money.” Badminton games take place Tuesdays and Thursdays, but
Nguyen can only make it to the Tuesday games. Because Nguyen is only able to attend Tuesday games, her ability to rank as the school’s number one is that much more remarkable. When asked about her secret, she replied that “running and a homemade juice with celery, apple,
banana and potatoes blended” help her stay prepared for action. She insisted that there is not much of a secret to the exercises she does besides running. All this hard work of practicing and winning games leads to the Coast Conference Finals in Fresno on May 5. This event will draw from the five conference teams, and then the top eight singles players and top six doubles teams will qualify to play in the State Championships located in San Diego on May 11 and 12. Badminton coach Jan Fosberg is thrilled to have such a player on the team. “Anna probably ranks in the top five players in Skyline badminton history,” Fosberg said. “She is not only a talented player but a team leader and a great person on and off of the court.” Her teammate Kayla Garcia also spoke kind words about Nguyen, saying “(s)he’s really modest. Having her on the team is helpful because she’s like an assistant coach to us and helps us improve.” Aside from badminton, work and school, in her very limited free time she is able to hang out with friends. She has even picked up bowling from her teammates. Overall, Nguyen’s main focus is to complete her general education requirements in hopes of becoming a successful badminton coach. School may be her priority, but that won’t distract her from playing hard for her team. “I try to do the best I can for Skyline,” Nguyen said.
Badminton Slideshow
Stop fan on fan violence Megan Benveniste
Skyline View Sports Editor
Rivalries have always been a part of sports, but what happens when the rivalry turns into something bigger, something no longer between the athletes, but rather between fans? Most of us remember March 31, 2011, when Giants fan Bryan Stow was brutally attacked in Los Angeles after the season opener at Dodger Stadium. He was there to cheer on the Giants and ended up being injured by a Dodgers fan. Many Giants players and Giants organizations have visited Bryan Stow in the hospital, and Barry Bonds even helped set up a college fund for his two kids. This year the Giants wanted Bryan Stow to throw out the ceremonial first pitch on the park’s opening day, but he wasn’t able to; instead his son Tyler threw it. There was also a special message from Bryan Stow on the big screen in centerfield. Since the attack on Bryan Stow, a lot of questions remain about what needs to be done to ensure that fans from any team, whether visiting or away, will feel safe. There needs to be more security at games. The San Francisco Giants have been one of the main teams to ensure that fans from any team are safe and that no such acts of violence are going to be tolerated. Fans should be able to travel to other stadiums and root for whatever team they like without being harassed. I know I would want to be able to go to another stadium and enjoy watching my team play a game. I don’t want to go to another stadium in fear that I could get hurt.