Xavier’s Gators did it again!!
Sparked by the rallies of Areta Buness and Teal Weaver,
Xavier claimed its second straight badminton championship with a 5-0 victory
over Gilbert Perry at Vestar Hall on Thursday night (Oct. 30). Xavier was
seeded No. 1, Perry No. 15.
The semifinals had been held in the Activity Center, but the
finals were moved to Vestar to accommodate an assembly on Friday morning (Oct.
31).
“The players worked together, had the discipline, and they
loved the challenge (of trying to repeat),’’ said XCP coach Nancy Meyer.
“It’s an amazing feeling. It’s really rewarding, considering
how hard we have worked all year,’’ said Buness, one of five outgoing seniors
on the roster.
Buness, the Gators’ No. 1 singles player, struggled in her
opening game against Perry’s No. 1, Jenna Reynolds.
Reynolds took an 11-4 win in the first game of the
best-of-three format and led most of the second game before Buness reached back
and rallied for an 11-9 win. The momentum carried over to the third game and
Buness prevailed 11-2.
“The first game, I was kind of beating myself,’’ Buness
said. “I started to concentrate on getting better serves and focusing my shots
going over the net and staying inbounds.’’
Said Meyer: “I was never really worried about Areta. She was
a fighter. She is so focused.’’
Weaver, the No. 3 singles player, also fell in her first
game, 11-4, to Lauren Kater. Weaver came back in a big way, earning an 11-0
shutout in the second game and an 11-8 win in the decisive game.
How did Weaver regain her composure?
“I just knew how really important these games were, to help
us not have to play doubles,’’ she said.
“I was really nervous at first. I was not making my shots.
But then I brought it back together. It was a lot of fun to win this with all
of the girls.’’
No. 2 Kirielle Singarajah was in control most of the way in
an 11-5, 11-4 win over Laike Reader. No. 4 Mallory Belknap defeated Adela
Martinez, 11-0, 11-6. No. 5 Baani Khurana had a pair of 11-5 wins over Michaela
Dye. No. 6 Laura Pearl won her first game 11-9 but the second game was not
necessary after Buness outlasted Reynolds.
The Gators swarmed the court amid shouts of joy. They
celebrated with the championship trophy and posed for photos taken by family
and friends.
The title was the fifth for Xavier since 2004.