Spartans badminton team take home zone banner

Miriam Ostermann

Times Associate Editor

 

The Spartan badminton team took home the zone banner for a fifth consecutive year in Three Hills this past weekend, leading with over two dozen wins and sending two teams to provincials this upcoming weekend.
Together with players from Standard School and Holy Cross Collegiate (HCC), 27 Strathmore High School athletes competed in the zones on April 30, with each individual contributing one or more points through wins, for a 30-point lead. While head coach Kenton Zandee expected a larger number of individuals to advance to provincials as was observed in previous years, the athletes – most of whom are inexperienced and new to the sport – left Zandee pleasantly surprised at the team’s success.
“I was impressed with our team, I really thought going into zones we’d be tight against some of the other schools,” he said. “It truly was a team effort. We had every single player, even novice players, get a point or two for us which all adds up in the end. We probably should’ve had a few more players at Provincials but it’s a great honour for these guys to be going.”
Despite a strong team effort overall, only four players – Nik Nizetic and Dion Moncayo, and Luka Nizetic and Ryan Edwards will advance to Provincials. Grade 12 players Nizetic and Moncayo, who have competed in Provincials once before, won gold in senior boys doubles, while Grade 10 students Luka Nizetic and Ryan Edwards won silver in junior boys doubles. Also representing the region at the Provincials is HCC player Ty Tarvyd who took home a silver medal for junior boy singles.
For Nik Nizetic, whose younger brother Luka is following in his footsteps, having played badminton since Grade 7 and qualifying and participating in zones every year since, prepared him for the impending event. While he said the competition at zones was minimal, he is aware of the level of skills required at Provincials.
“We’ve practiced a lot more this year I think that’s really helping us a lot,” Nizetic said. “I think last year before provincials we didn’t really practice that much. Last year we were in the second division, because we got second in zones, and we got second there. So this year we’re in the first division so we’re playing against the top teams in Alberta and I think that’s going to be a little bit more competitive. But I think we have a good shot at it.”
Playing at a provincial level entails SHS players, where badminton is often a secondary sport, to compete against elite club athletes who train six days a week. Nonetheless, the experience will end the Grade 12s season on a high note, and propel the Grade 10s moving toward next year.
“This is the pinnacle you can reach in high school for badminton so it’s pretty exciting for these guys to go,” Zandee said. “We’ve been going since January and these guys have been in numerous tournaments and so now you had an incredible accomplishment making it to provincials, there’s going to be some amazing teams there that play club and it’s going to be really difficult for these guys. If they can come out with even a couple wins that would be exceptional.”
Provincials will take place on May 6-7 in Edmonton.