Clara Gruger said she wasn’t “that good” at badminton when she first tried it as a freshman at Evanston.
Four years later, Gruger capped her prep career by competing at the state meet at Eastern Illinois in Charleston. Gruger finished 1-2 in her first state appearance.
“I knew it was something I could be good at,” said Gruger, one of the maximum six participants for Evanston at the state tournament. “I was upset with my second loss, but I was overall happy with myself. I can’t be too upset because of how far I came.”
A volleyball player and gymnast, Gruger said she thought trying out for a spring sport in high school would be fun. The only racket sport she played growing up was tennis. She said her background in volleyball aided her in badminton.
“It’s a similar motion, and the athleticism and agility you need in volleyball helps, too,” she said. “I just needed to learn how to play it, the strategy involved.”
Evanston coach Karilyn Joyce said Gruger, a three-year varsity member, is like most of the players on her past and present teams.
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“None of them really have had any experience with it,” said Joyce, whose daughter, senior Keegan Joyce, was the team’s only state qualifier who had played badminton before high school. “But by the time they are older, they have learned more and understand it better.”
Gruger nearly advanced to the state meet last season. She said the memory also spurred her on this spring.
“I knew I had to improve on certain things,” Gruger said. “The biggest thing for me was how to read my opponent and my movements on the court. I have gotten better at how to play each point, and that comes with experience.
“I am really happy with how everything turned out.”
Notes
* Keegan Joyce and her doubles partner, Sarah Felvey, made Evanston’s deepest run at state, losing to Neuqua Valley’s Katherine Chung and Eva Chen 19-21, 21-15, 21-11 in the fourth round of the consolation bracket. Keegan Joyce and Felvey finished with a 3-2 record at state.
* Evanston singles player Sonia Sood went 1-2 at state, while the Wildkits doubles team of Tess Brieva and Rebecca Conover went 0-2.
Twitter: @harnesspreps