Nerves don’t stop Gryphon from SOSSA title
Erika Cabrera Acevedo overcame a bad case of nerves to capture the girls singles title at the Southern Ontario Secondary Schools Association (SOSSA) badminton championship Thursday at Smithville District Christian High School.
The 17-year-old, Grade 12 student at Greater Fort Erie Secondary School topped her opponent from Bernie Custis Secondary School in Hamilton in three sets to advance to the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) championship May 2-4 in Barrie.
“It’s very exciting,” Cabrera Acevedo said. “I don’t know how I did it. I’m very nervous and I think I’m going to throw up.”
Cabrera Acevedo said her nerves almost got the best of her on the court.
“I feel like I made most of my mistakes because I was nervous. If I would have kept my cool I think I would have played better,” she said.
Cabrera Acevedo gave badminton at try in Grade 10 to spite her sister, Shania.
“My sister was good at it and I wanted to beat her,” she smiled.
She said her game has evolved since she began.
“I like clearing and doing drop shots,” she said.
Cabrera Acevedo came to Canada as a refugee from Venezuela in 2013 and has embraced the opportunity.
“I feel like I’ve gotten very close with a lot of friends from other countries as well here,” she said.
She said learning a new language has been difficult.
“The language, learning it was horrible. I took me a year-and-a-half and I still struggle.”
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