Everyone remembers the 2016 NBA finals: the Cavs, led by a dynamic duo of LeBron James and Kyrie Irving, along with integral pieces like sharpshooter JR Smith and Big Man Kevin love miraculously battled back from being down 3-1 to the 73-win Golden State Warriors to capture the first championship in Cavaliers history.

Sunnyslope’s badminton team accomplished a similar feat on Saturday when, led by the dynamic duo of Seniors Corinne Valente and Sabrina Case, along with integral contributions from Seniors Mia Aronsohn, Phoebe Rousin, and Jessa Jacobs and Junior Annabelle Schlesinger, defeated the number one ranked Hamilton Huskies in dramatic fashion to capture their first division 1 team championship. 

The match was decided by a razor thin margin with singles play being knotted at 3-3 making doubles play the deciding factor where Sunnyslope won 2-1.

“The first game we lost 21-14 so we weren’t feeling super confident but then the next two games we won by two points, so it was very close,” said Valente.

The thin margins held constant through the match, but there were moments where the team looked dominant.

“I lost the first set of my singles match, but I came back and won the second set. At that point my opponent was flustered, and I just killed her basically,” said Jacobs.

The match didn’t come without roadblocks, though.

“I got whacked in the face in the second set [of my doubles match], but then I taped my face back together and finished the game. Even though we lost that game, it was okay because my other teammates finished the job,” said Jacobs.

The togetherness of the team helped propel them to victory.

“The whole win was a team effort. Everybody won a match, and we couldn’t have won if that didn’t happen which is really cool,” said Jacobs.

The win was also fueled by impressive coaching.

“In the middle of the game our coaches would come talk to us and tell us their weaknesses and what shots we should take, and once we got their feedback, we kind of took over and got the lead,” said Case.

Having lost their only match against Hamilton in the regular season, Sunnyslope was considered an underdog by many; this only fueled their competitive fire. 

“When we lost in the regular season, we felt like it could’ve gone either way, and we really wanted to come out and show everyone that we could do this, and we did it,” said Jacobs.

This sense of confidence ran throughout the team.

“We knew we were capable of beating them. We just had to stay calm, take it one point at a time, be confident in each other, and work together,” said Valente. 

Meeting Hamilton in the regular season proved to be an integral part of the victory.

“Because we played them in the regular season, we knew their weaknesses, so we capitalized off of that,” said Case.  

The seniors see this as a truly gratifying end to their four years on the team.

“I feel so proud of us because we worked so hard the past four years, so we really deserve this,” said Jacobs. 

Case shared a similar sentiment.

“I’m just so proud. It still doesn’t feel real that our hard work for four years paid off like this.”