The DVC badminton season is wrapping up the regular season with Naperville North hosting defending state champion Neuqua Valley. Both teams have rolled through their conference opponents and look to gain the edge heading into the conference tournament. This highlight is sponsored by BMO.
In one doubles, Rakshita Ruparel and Paige Xu from Naperville North take on Ishi Reddy and Luna Han from Neuqua.
Reddy and Han stay locked in for the Wildcats
The Huskies look to jump to a fast start. Ruparel lines a shot that clips the net and hops down to the floor for the point.
Later in the set, after a lengthy rally, Xu is the one to add a point for the Huskies with a strong smash down the middle as North looks to keep pace.
Neuqua Valley responds with a brilliant backhand from Reddy, who gets the no-look shot to drop in for the point.
Looking to put things away, Han serves for the Cats in the far court and gets the rally going. Reddy puts the point away with a nifty drop shot to earn the win by the score of 21-6, 21-12.
A big win for North in two doubles
In number two doubles, Neuqua Valley seniors Amber Shi and Katherine Ye take on Michelle Wang and Ruby Li from North in a key matchup. North has already earned wins in three and four doubles, with Neuqua taking one and five doubles.
The Huskies earn a first set point with Ruby Li showing off the strong forehand smash as she powers a point through.
The Wildcats respond in the second set. Amber Shi with a smash of her own near the net that gets down for the point.
Katherine Ye gets in on the parade of smashes as she swings the racquet down with authority to keep the Cats close.
But Naperville North is able to pull away late in the second set. Michelle Wang with a nice drop shot that Neuqua returns, but the Huskies have them at a disadvantage, finishing the point and a two-set win 21-18, 21-12.
An exciting matchup at four singles, where Amber Shi is back on the court against Abby Wang from North. Wang uses a nice drop shot, winning the first set 21-15.
The next two sets are complete nailbiters with Shi forcing a third, outlasting Wang by a 26-24 score. Set three needs extra time as well, with Shi again winning a thriller 23-21.
Into number two singles play where Kelly Hu from North faces the defending state singles champion, Ishi Reddy. The Huskie forces an early error as Reddy hits the net on her return as Hu’s teammates shout encouragement.
Reddy bounces back quickly and shows the full display of her arsenal. Shifting from powerful smashes to a light touch on drop shots. The Wildcat earns the win in two sets, 21-11, 21-8.
Two star freshmen square off in one singles
Wrapping up the day with one singles with two of the top freshmen in the state. Neuqua’s Clarinda Jin and North’s Erica Lin have trained together for years, but square off for the first time as varsity opponents.
Lin serves in the first set, which Jin smashes down. The Huskie quickly reaches over and gets a return back over, but Jin follows with a drop shot just over the net for the point.
One of several great rallies between the pair ensues in the second set after Jin wins set one 21-6. But Lin responds well in set two with a line drive across the court for the point.
The second set remains highly contested as Jin struggles to put her friend away. Another lengthy rally rages on, until Jin closes things out with a drop shot to take the set 21-17. However, Naperville North takes the team victory after a great DVC finale by the score of 9-6.
For more prep sports highlights, visit the Naperville Sports Weekly page.
