ALMOST PERFECT : Estancia Junior Hoang Ly Captured Every Match but His Last, the Southern Section Final

Hoang Ly has been yearning to grab his fishing pole and bait and spend a relaxing day on the Newport Beach pier.

Ly, an Estancia High School junior, spent his spring reeling in badminton victories and plans to spend much of the summer and the beginning of his senior year fishing for a college with a respected badminton program.

Ly, The Times’ Orange County badminton player of the year, won five tournament championships and lost only one of 66 matches during the past season. His only loss was in the Southern Section boys’ singles final to Dan Mussman of Alta Loma.

But Ly came back the next day to win the Southern California Junior Nationals, defeating Marc Carrido, who had beaten Mussman in the semifinals.

Ly also took third place in April in the U.S. Junior Nationals in Colorado Springs.

The U.S. Olympic Committee has shown interest in bringing him to Colorado Springs for school, training and the chance to make the U.S. Olympic team for the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, where badminton will be a medal sport for the first time. At the 1988 Seoul Olympics, badminton made its Olympic debut as a demonstration sport.

But college and the Olympics pose a problem to Ly--he doesn’t want to stray too far from home.

“Right now, I don’t know which colleges offer what, but I know that some nearby schools do offer badminton,” Ly said.

Even if he passes up the Olympic Committee offer and such a respected badminton school as Arizona State, Ly says his chances are still good to make the Olympics.

“If I try, I will make it,” he said.

His coach, Lillian Brabander, just wants to see him develop during his college years.

“The best thing for him to do is to go to a college with a really good (badminton) program,” Brabander said. “He is as good as anyone in the nation.”

He showed that when he finished third in the U.S. Junior Nationals and won the Southern California Junior National championship. And he has added tournament victories this season at Garden Grove, Estancia, Chino, Covina and Rosemead.

The only thing missing from his list of achievements is the Southern Section championship.

“I think I will do it next year,” Ly said. “I played more patient this year and I was more consistent this year. I want to change my game next year. I want to be more consistent.

“I had a horrible time serving this year. It was on about 80% of the time. I want it to be more like 90%.”

Perhaps that’s the formula that will bring the elusive Southern Section championship he has been fishing for.

1989 ALL-COUNTY BADMINTON TEAM

FIRST TEAM Boys’ Singles

Hoang Ly Jr. Estancia Girls’ Singles Sanne Simonsen Sr. Cypress Boys’ Doubles Jason Chong Sr. Garden Grove Maroo Liew Sr. Girls’ Doubles Da Sundara Jr. Buena Park Dewee Sundara Sr. Mixed Doubles Hoang Ly Jr. Estancia Loan Le Jr. SECOND TEAM Boys’ Singles Chulki Song Jr. Buena Park Girls’ Singles Noy Sundara So. Buena Park Boys’ Doubles Prat Mallawong Sr. Garden Grove Santikul Silavong Jr. Girls’ Doubles Josephine Cheng Sr. Fountain Valley Sayuri Tahara Sr. Mixed Doubles Chulki Song Jr. Buena Park Noy Sundara So.