With an opportunity that eluded them last year, Cabrillo’s Brian Habacon and Poly’s Nga Pham made the most of their chances Monday afternoon at the Moore League badminton singles finals at Lakewood.
For Habacon, he made the most of his opportunity to capture the boys singles title defeating Poly’s Peter You 21-9, 24-22.
“After being benched last year when I was No. 1 ranked made me want to win this even more,” Habacon said. “Knowing all my other classmates came in with more potential and more skill made me train even harder.”
Habacon had an impressive run to the title, sweeping all his opponents including against teammate Ryan Poulos in the semifinals 21-10, 21-16.
In the third place match, Poly’s Danny Lam defeated Poulos 21-16, 21-18.
On the girls side, Poly’s senior Nga Pham found herself back in the finals with another opportunity to win a title after falling short last season.
Pham proved why she was the top-ranked athlete in her bracket as she swept all her opponents including a 21-9, 21-13 victory in the championship match against Lakewood’s Cecilia Fonseca.
“Today coming in I was a little nervous,” Pham said. “I was going up against the No.2 seed, that I’ve never played against before. My teammates helped me calm down and just enjoy the time here.”
Determined to finish her senior year with a title, Pham made sure she made the most of her opportunities.
“I needed to make the most of it,” Pham said of this being her last year. “I’ve had so many people support me.”
In the third-place match, Millikan’s Olivia Padilla defeated Lakewood’s Andrea Perez 21-16, 16-21, 21-19 in a three-set thriller.
Long Beach Poly and Lakewood were the team co-Moore League champions this season in the co-ed sport.
The Moore League finals will come to an end on Wednesday and Thursday when the doubles and mixed doubles take place.
