The Women’s Badminton team is gearing up for another strong season.

Head Coach Jan Fosberg is excited about this year’s team. Skyline is traditionally a very strong contender in state badminton, and she expects that this year will be no different. Fosberg is confident in placing first or second in the northern California team conference, as well as sending a few individuals on to the singles state championships.

This season’s badminton team will have to give a strong performance in order to keep up with the team last year. The 2005 Skyline team was undefeated in the northern California state championships, led by our singles state champions Stephanie Cheung and Gina Gomez. Skyline came second only to Irvine Valley for the all-state conference.

This year’s team is mostly young, new players, but Fosberg says they are solid and ready to be molded into the state-dominating badminton force that we all have come to expect from Skyline. Jennifer Wong and Dan Tan are returning veterans from last season, and their experience and talent will be a great benefit to the Trojans this year.

The biggest challenge facing the badminton teams this season would probably be the smaller team size that Skyline is forced to play with. The Trojans have fewer badminton players than other contenders, such as the City College of San Francisco, which comes as a disadvantage on tournament days when each school is required to play two rounds both of singles and doubles. In such a situation, CCSF would be able to switch in extra players who would be fresh and energetic, while the battle-hardened Trojans would be forced to play each match with the same players, risking substandard play through exhaustion.

Fosberg says that both the women’s badminton team and the men’s badminton club are still accepting players. Any experience level would be welcomed. Practices are at CSM, but transportation is provided.