By Dominic Scianna

Lorin Volberding is all things girl’s varsity badminton as the lone coach of the Roosevelt-Von Steuben Co-Op team. He roams the sidelines during home matches, converses with his individual players, inputs and runs all statistics, and manages all game operations. He is a one-man band for his sport, and all his efforts and dedication paid off on April 17 as his squad captured their first ever Chicago Public League (CPL) North Conference championship by defeating Northside 3-2. The team finished with a perfect 5-0 conference record and 9-1 record overall.

In their 3-2 win over Northside College Prep to clinch the conference title, Roosevelt-Von’s #1 doubles team of Hana Fazlic/Alba Oliva won in two sets (21-16, 21-12), along with victories by Cerela Marin (#2 singles) by a score of 21-15, 16-21, 22-20, and a #3 singles win by Melinda Alpizar (21-18, 21-10) to close out the match.

“It’s a very exciting moment (winning the conference) because it’s never happened to us before,” said Volberding.

Having to merge as a co-op varsity sport because of a low number of badminton players at each school has bonded this team to form a unique experience that has been embraced wholeheartedly.

“I think it’s amazing (to partner with another school). I’ve grown to love these girls and we make for a great community together as a team,” said Alpizar.

Alpizar’s singles teammate agreed that this team is special among the combined 20 Roosevelt-Von Steuben varsity and junior varsity team rosters.

“It’s really nice to meet new people who love the sport of badminton as much as I do,” said Marin.

Now the CPL Badminton City Championships take center stage the weekend of April 29 at Whitney Young High School. By winning the CPL North Conference, Volberding’s team gets an automatic bid and will be seeded for the finals which is an advantage when going up against strong teams the likes of defending city champs, Payton College Prep, Whitney Young (whom Roosevelt-Von defeated in a regular season matchup this season), and their rivals – Northside.

So, there is light at the end of the tunnel for Roosevelt-Von Badminton as they enter the city championship draw having a big win under their belt, and a #1 doubles team of Fazlic and Oliva that has been defeated just once, albeit in a competitive loss to Payton, as reason for optimism.