San Diego Mesa Ends PCC's 3-Year Run, Wins 1st SCC Women's Badminton Title

San Diego Mesa College finished 4-0 in a skelatal, 3-team league and captured its first South Coast Conference women's badminton championship. This ended the 3-year run of titles held by Pasadena City.

The Olympians (8-0 overall) will travel to face defending state champ De Anza (9-3, the North's Coast champions) in the 3C2A State Championship final on Thursday, May 7. 

Mesa appears to be the favorite to win the state title as it twice defeated the Mountain Lions in regular season, non-conference matches, 12-9 and 17-4.

Mesa won the very first two state championships when the sport emerged at this level in 2000, then 2001. Ironically, De Anza was the runner-up at the inaugural championship 27 years ago won by the Olympians, 11-10. Mesa was a member of the Orange Empire Conference that season.

Pacing the Olympians are top seeds Yumi Nguyen, maybe the state's most talented singles player this season, and Anna Heiner-Moeller, a polished. experienced performer from Denmark. Returning sophomore Christina Nguyen and Trang Tran are the middle seeds on a deep squad. 

Yumi Nguyen, a freshman, was a CIF-San Diego Section #2 seed as a senior last year at San Diego's Kearny High.

Mesa allowed just three team points in its four SCC victories, easily beating PCC, 20-1 and 19-2. The Lancers (4-3, 2-2) had won 18 previous conference titles in the sport's South Coast history. East Los Angeles was the only other conference team as the sport has lost numbers througout the state in recent years.

The 3C2A State Individual Championships are scheduled at De Ana on Friday-Saturday, May 8-9.

Release by Robert Lewis, SCC SID