For the third straight year, the Pasadena City College women's badminton team ran into a North roadblock as the Lancers were blanked, 11-0, by De Anza in the 3C2A State Championship Team Final on Thursday night at City College of San Francisco.
The Lancers finished the team season at 10-3, losing all three times v. the undefeated champion Mountain Lions (15-0), who also shut out PCC in the 2023 final. Last year, it was San Francisco scoring a 12-7 win. Pasadena last won in 2018, capping back-to-back state titles during the height of the program's success.
"I was just glad we got as far as we did this season," said PCC head coach Jen Ho. "De Anza was just a deeper, better team. We didn't have the balance we've had in other years, but we worked hard and improved enough that allowed us to get past San Diego Mesa to win the conference."
The only set Pasadena won was by #5 singles player Yolanda Huang, who took the second game, 26-24, but lost in three to De Anza's #6 Trinity Nguyen. The Lancers top players, #1 Anh Tran and #2 Janet Diec, both went extra points in an effort to stretch their matches to three, but each lost in two sets. Tran lost to De Anza #2 Makayla Than, 21-12, 22-20, while Diec played a valiant second set only to fall perhaps the best singles player in California--De Anza's Mailan Hoang Vuong, 21-5, 24-22.
The state finals are played until a team reaches the magic 11 point mark, which the Mountain Lions pulled off by the end of the second round.
PCC were the undefeated South Coast Conference champions (10-0) for the third straight season.
The Lancers now participate in the 3C2A State Individual Singles/Doubles Championships Friday-Saturday, May 9-10.
CHAMPIONSHIP BOX
DE ANZA 11, PCC 0
#1 Mailan Hoang Vuong (D) d. #2 Janet Diec (P) , 21-5, 24-22
#2 Makayla Than (D) d. #1 Anh Tran (P), 21-12, 22-20
#3 Natelee Lam (D) d. #4 Karylle Peralta (P), 21-10, 21-14
#4 Jenny Thai (D) d. #3 Beatris Tzou (P), 21-7, 21-8
#5 Karina Chow (D) d. #6 Lexi Xing (P), 21-5, 21-10
#6 Trinity Nguyen (D) d. #5 Yolanda Huang (P), 21-9, 24-26, 21-9
Doubles:
#1 Vuong-Lam (D) d. #2 Tzou-Huang (P), 21-9, 21-13
#2 Thai-Chow (D) d. #1 Tran-Diec (P), 21-14, 21-19
#3 Than-Nguyen (D) d. #3 Peralta-Christel Joy Villa (P), 21-6, 21-6