Defending Champs Start Fast

October 20, 2009

NAIT athletes captured four individual titles last weekend as the ACAC badminton season started at Mount Royal University -- the former Mount Royal College -- in Calgary.

Sun Yang, Sinead Cheah and Joey Vandervet, all individual champions last season when NAIT captured the ACAC championship, were standouts once again.

Sun Yang grabbed the women's singles title and teamed with Sinead Cheah to win women's doubles and then wound up fifth with partner Jonathan Chang in mixed doubles. Vandervet was fifth in men's singles before he teamed with Chang for a triumph in men's doubles and did the same with Cheah in mixed doubles.

Natalie Neumann turned in one of her best-ever performances as she outlasted Laura Fong of Mount Royal, a former silver medalist in the Canadian College championships, to post a 21-12, 19-21, 21-19 victory.

Reigning silver medalist Ogul Kaltakci overcame illness to finish third in women's singles, second in doubles with Neumann and second in mixed doubles with first-year Ooks partner Jordy Lee.

"This was a great start to our season," head coach Jordan Richey said. "We had some amazing individual performances which seemed to inspire others on the team." Richey anticipated that the first weekend of success could lead to a "monumental season for our team."

Vandervet, Sung Yang and Neumann were nominated as NAIT's athletes of the week.

He produced a weekend record of 10-and-1 while Sung Yang breezed past all foes without dropping a set in singles or doubles.
She also went 10-and-1 for the weekend.

"Natalie continues to surprise me," Richey said after Neumann, a fourth-year business student, finished fourth in singles, second in doubles and sixth in mixed doubles. She is a co-captain who "always finds ways to motivate herself," the coach said.