By Richard Smith
Twitter: @rsmithYWV

Last year's road warriors are one unexpected home match away from a return trip to the state Diviion II team badminton finals.

No. 3 seed Ironwood (14-1) will play host to No. 7 Phoenix Horizon (12-4) at 6 p.m. tonight.

While the Eagles' players and coach Brett Stafford said Horizon is one of the best teams in the division, this matchup is still a surprise. To get here, the Huskies had to knock off No. 2 seed and three-time defending state champion Phoenix Sunnyslope in its gym, which the Huskies did 5-2 on Monday.

"To not have Sunnyslope in the finals is very rare and not in the final four is extremely rare. You always want to play the best so you can say you are the best," Ironwood coach Brett Stafford said. "I don't think (the rankings) value strength of schedule. It's wins and losses. And Horizon played by far the toughest schedule and because of that they were very underrated in the polls. They're way better than No. 7 and they proved it."

A year ago, Ironwood was in a similar spot as the #9 seed, knocking off top-seeded Prescott up north. Then in the semifinals, the Eagles beat #4 Washington.

Sunnyslope won 5-1 in the Eagles' first finals trip. And a rematch seemed to be set up.

"We were kind of surprised. It was kind of the feeling of, oh dang, we don't get to beat them this year," Ironwood senior Karis Fisher said. "Horizon is very good."

Fisher is a primary reason the team is back in the semifinals. Sje is the Eagles' lone senior but only started playing as a junior and is less experienced in badminton than her five varsity teammates, all of whom are juniors and three-year players.

Fisher has jumped from JV No. 1 last year to the No. 3 varsity singles player in 2019.

"With her athletic ability I knew she was going to be good when I first saw her," Stafford said. "Girls could beat her last year because they knew badminton better. Now that she's picked it up and become an awesome addition."

The Eagles served notice at midseason, defeating Division II top 10 opponents Kellis, Sunrise Mountain and Greenway on three consecutive days to start October. And it wasn't close, with Ironwood winning 22 of a potential 27 matches.

Three varsity players are back from 2018 and all are motivated to win a first state title.

"We work super hard and we want it super bad. That comes through in our games," junior Toni DiMarco said.

DiMarco is the Eagles #1 player and reached the quarterfinals of the state Division II individual championships. Fellow junior and #2 player Savannah Hendrix also reached the quarterfinals.

Fisher said she always had a good feeling about this team and winning all three categories in the disrict meet — team, singles and doubles — only cemented that view.

"This group is a little more athletic so that has helped. Other than that, their mindset hasn't changed," Stafford said. "A lot of people may have a top three but they don't have a bottom three. They're very solid and know badminton. They use that to their advantage."

Three varsity starters — DiMarco, Hendrix and Xandra Rhodes — are back and motivated to win state.

The Eagles handled #6 Goldwater 5-2 Monday.

"Winning state would be absolutely amazing. I've thought about it many times. I can't even impagine how I'd feel," Fisher said.

Mountain Ridge

The other traditional West Valley badminton power is back in the Division I final four after a rebuilding year in 2018.

Tonight the #4 Mountain Lions play at top seed and defending champ Gilbert Perry.

"Every year we have the same goal. 10 wins and a trip to the playoffs. That was our goal this year as well, and we were able to get there. I am very proud of my girls for so many reasons, and this significant athletic accomplishment is one of those reasons," Mountain Ridge coach Timothy Rosinbum said.

This year, the Mountain Lions finished 11-3. Perry swept them, but losses to #5 Phoenix Xavier Prep and #2 Phoenix Pinnacle were competitive.

So Monday's 5-3 victory over Xavier in the quarterfinals was the program's best moment since reaching the 2017 Division I final.

"I had never beaten Xavier, so that was significant for me personally. The fact that we were able to beat them in the playoffs at home was a significant accomplishment for the girls. Their play was incredible, especially in doubles where we got the win. I believe that any time you get a team into the playoffs or quarterfinals it is a significant accomplishment. To make it to the semifinals is especially noteworthy," Rosinbum stated. 

He said Kaitlin Tucay, Morgan Pearson and Shivani Bahl are three of the team's senior leaders. Tucay is new to the team after moving from the Philippines last year. Her incredible play has lifted the team.

Two sophomores Ali Roskelley and Samantha Rawson have played well at the bottom of the varsity ladder. Rosinbum said Ali Pedersen, a junior, has been tough, particularly in doubles and helped get a lot of wins.

Perry has been the roadblock for Mountain Ridge and the rest of Division I, much like Sunnyslope was in Division II.

" Perry is a tough opponent. Coach Johnson does an incredible job with her girls and they are always such a deep team. We are headed into that match determined to earn the upset by winning every point we can and by not giving thing easy," Rosinbum stated.

Kellis

Before upsetting Sunnyslope Monday, Horizon knocked off playoff newcomer Kellis by the same 5-2 score.

Cougars Coach Chris Ensslin said his team's first postseason performance proved it belonged.

"I was extremely proud of the girls in their first playoff performance.  They came out flat-footed, perhaps due to nerves, but ended up competing much harder after a few rallies.  I was worried that we would get swept and laughed out of the gym, like we didn’t belong in the state tournament," Ensslin stated. "The teams were closely matched and several of the matches could have gone either way.  It was somewhat satisfying to know that Kellis, at #10, lost 2-5, as did the #2 team, Sunnyslope.  We all still feel we could have won that match, but we are happy that we made it as far as we did."

For most of the season, Keilah Rodriguez was in the #1 position on the ladder.  Her and Sowina Kuy are the only two on the team that played as freshman.  Rodriguez was an exhibition player her freshman year, and then improved all the way to the varsity team her sophomore year. 

Senior Arisha Fatema ended the season in the #1 position. Ensslin said she has a natural court sense and excellent bird control.  She is not the strongest player, she doesn’t have the strongest smash or clear, but she can drop the bird just over the net across court on a dime.

"She was our shining star her sophomore year when she started, however she was unable to play her junior year due to academic priorities.  She is the best player to come through our school and if she had another year under her she might compete for one of the top players in the division," Ensslin stated.

He said junior Sowina Kuy made tremendous improvements over the summer leading to this season, and she did it in Cambodia with her twin sister, Sowino and family. The sisters are the only underclassmen on the roster.

"The twins, and I, are nervous about losing four seniors next year, but we are even more hungry now that we’ve had the taste," Ensslin stated.

Kellis' record was the same as in 2018, and the three losses again were against Ironwood, Gilbert Mesquite and Sunrise Mountain. The most significant difference though was this year's final match against Cactus, who was ranked 13 at the time, while Kellis was #12.

"Basically, the winning team would make the playoffs. Cactus was a good team and we narrowly edged a victory, giving a climactic end to our season and a jump to 10 in the rankings.  Yes, this is the schools first ever badminton playoff berth.  While we had our district tournament and state individuals tournament, our main focus was to beat Cactus and get to the team state tournament," Ensslin stated.