Commiserations to our Women's Football Team (pictured right), who lost the Cuppers Final to Pembroke on penalties on Saturday. A brilliant goal from Sophie D'Angelo put Queens' into the lead in the 26th minute, with Pembroke equalising in the second half. With no more goals, even in ten minutes of extra time, the match went to penalties, where Pembroke won 4-2.
The Queens' Badminton team have also recently placed second in the Cuppers tournament; after an impressive stream of victories against formidable opponents, including top seed Trinity, they were sadly pipped to the post by Jesus in the final. A full report from captain Lyndon Teng can be found below.
Both Queens' netball teams were in action over the weekend in the group stages of their Cuppers tournament. The second team was sadly knocked out, whilst the first team came away with a clean streak, winning four matches against Murray Edwards, Robinson, Homerton and St Catharine's. The afternoon's fixtures had to be called off due to poor weather, so the team will have to wait to continue their campaign - watch this space for updates!
Queens' students have also been representing the University in various Varsity competitions this term. Congratulations to Eleanor Lee, women's captain of the Cambridge University Karate Club, who have continued their winning streak at the Karate Union of Great Britain Central Championships last weekend, having defeated Oxford in the Varsity two weekends ago. Eleanor took a silver medal in the women's individual sparring and a gold medal and trophy in the women's team event, along with Danielle Ball (Homerton).
Photos, below, left: The mixed lacrosse team after their Cuppers victory two weekends ago. Middle: The Karate club at the KUGB championships over the weekend. Right: the Badminton team.
Badminton report, from Lyndon Teng
Pictured above, left to right: Patrick Zillessen, Dhuraisamy Balan, Saket Koti, Eric Jou, Athan Siah, Lyndon Teng
Amidst the flurry of week 7 deadlines, members of the Queens’ Badminton team (Open) were busy preparing for Queens’ second semi-final cuppers appearance in four years. Having defeated top-seeded Trinity 2-1 in the quarters, the team faced a string of back to back fixtures, culminating in half a day of matches at the university sports centre.
Unfazed by a formidable St John’s team, Koti and Balan performed spectacularly, taking their first match against the cup favourites. While Siah and Teng equalised, thereby forcing a third game, Jou and Zillessen’s relentless offensive provided the edge against a capable John’s pair, to put Queens’ through to their first ever Cuppers Finals on record!
Hungry for the prize, the team looked to capitalise on their momentum and unseat two-time champions Jesus. However, a period of enforced rest quickly settled in as the Mixed Cuppers finals got underway, with the league secretary buzzing around, trying to keep matches running on schedule.
As the clock ran down, Koti and Balan were the first to make a valiant stand against a highly experienced Jesus pair, but the setback was quickly overcome by Jou and Zillessen, who remained cool and collected throughout their match, swiftly capitalising on mistakes made by Jesus. Cuppers went into overtime – a testament to the quality of badminton on display – with the last match of the final yet to be played by Siah and Teng. A shaky start to the match saw Jesus take an early lead, but, cheered on by the Queens’ team and their supporters, Siah and Teng quickly recovered with a comeback in the second game. Despite taking an early lead in the deciding game, an exhausted Siah and Teng ultimately conceded the match, and the title, by the slimmest of margins: a score of 18-21 separated the teams in the end.
We went into the semi-finals as the underdogs of the tournament, and came within touching distance of our first ever cuppers victory for Queens’. Nevertheless, we are immensely proud of what has been Queens’ most successful open cuppers run in History, and grateful for the overwhelming support we received from the wider Queens’ badminton community on the way. Participation in the Women’s league is higher than ever before, and Queens’ I and II have both retained their position in Divisions I and II respectively, despite an often hectic schedule. As we move into Easter term, there will be more opportunities to play casually in Queens’, and we look forward to seeing you on the courts, regardless of ability or experience!
If any Fellows, students, staff or alumni have news items they would like to be featured on the College website, please send them to the Development Officer (Communications)
Alice Webster acw69@cam.ac.uk and 01223 (7)46980
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