Hudson Recovering From Shock of Upset Loss : After 38 Consecutive Victories, Semifinal Defeat Abruptly Changed Perspective

For the past two weeks, Tracy Hudson of Garden Grove High School has been in a state of recovery.

The three-time Southern Section girls’ singles badminton champion is still getting over her first loss of the season, an 11-5, 4-11, 11-8 upset by Colton’s Denise Gudmundson in the Southern Section team semifinals. Hudson finished the season 38-1.

“It’s knocked me out of my senses,” Hudson said. “At first I was angry, and then I wondered if it was all worth it.”

Shortly after the loss, Hudson came down with chicken pox. The illness forced her to miss her team’s banquet and spend more time contemplating her defeat.

“It was a big lesson losing, but I finally decided it was worth it to play, and that without it (badminton), I’d feel empty.”

Hudson, The Times’ Orange County Badminton Player of the Year, lost only two matches in the past two years and finished her four-year career with a 154-5 record.

In April, she won the 18-and-under junior national badminton championship in Boston, establishing herself as the best teen-age player in the country.

She has accepted a scholarship to Arizona State, one of only a handful of schools that offer scholarships in the sport.

Hudson, 17, is easily head and shoulders above her competition in the Orange County, but with every new accomplishment, she feels even more pressure to live up to others’ expectations.

“The pressures were tremendous this year,” Hudson said. “The newspapers made it sound routine winning the title, but it’s very different each time.

“Every time I played, I felt as though I was being watched for weaknesses, and that whoever played me had nothing to lose. But I’ve learned to handle the pressures.”

Vicki Toutz, Garden Grove coach, says that with more training, there’s no reason Hudson shouldn’t be one of the top five players in the nation.

Hudson is full of plans. She already is talking about defending her junior national title next year, and, if successful, will compete in the adult division. She wants to make the United States national team and hopes to compete in the 1992 Olympics, when badminton will become an Olympic sport.

“I just see a lot of dreams right now,” Hudson said.

Friday: Golf

THE TIMES’ ALL-COUNTY

Badminton Team

Viet Ta Garden Grove Tracy Hudson Garden Grove Thyaset Nhan Buena Park Heather Hassinger Buena Park Binh Tran Garden Grove Thuy Nguyen Garden Grove Boys’ Doubles Ross Cope Fount. Valley Steve Nakanishi Fount. Valley Hoan Ly Estancia Hung Quach Estancia Girls’ Doubles Tonya Van Dervort Buena Park Tu Le Buena Park Giao Ly Troy Tham Tran Troy Girls’ Singles Tracy Hudson Garden Grove Thuy Nguyen Garden Grove Boys’ Singles Thomas Sudibjo Fullerton Dave Douglas Costa Mesa