INUVIK
There's no doubt there was a 'racquet' going on at the East Three school gymnasiums last weekend, but it was all in good fun.

Inuvik player Matthew Skinner made it to the semi-finals before bowing out in the Beaufort-Delta Regional Badminton Tournament on Nov. 15. - Shawn Giilck/NNSL photo

The second Beaufort-Delta Regional Badminton Tournament held in recent years was a big success, according to the organizers and players.

Inuvik players did well at the tournament overall, with David Lichty winning the men's trophy. Perennial powerhouse player Leanne Gordon won the adult women's division, while Jarvis Mitchell and Kyra McDonald won the under-15 boys and girls titles. McDonald also struck gold with partner Sam Skinner in the under-15 doubles division.

Nicole Collison finished second in the under-19 women's division, while Matthew Skinner was eliminated in the under-19 men's division after advancing to the semi-finals.

Colin Pybus, who helped organize the tournament, said he was very pleased with how it went, despite having to make some last-minute scheduling changes to accommodate players who had travelled from out of town.

That caused the schedule for the under-19 divisions to be compressed and bumped up so the finals were held Nov. 15 instead of on Nov. 16 as originally scheduled.

"Some of the athletes said their planes were leaving Sunday, before the finals were to start," said Pybus. "So we accommodated them. That's what we do in Inuvik."

"It was very well attended," he said. "We had a lot of good competition, with 34 students signing up and 11 adults."

He's optimistic the sport is back on the upswing in Inuvik. He's keen on offering local athletes, students and public alike the chance to experience more than the always-popular core sports such as hockey, basketball and volleyball.

Two powerhouse siblings from Fort Providence, Christina Bonnetrouge and her brother Spencer Bonnetrouge, proved to be the dominant forces in the under-19 categories.

Collison, a Grade 11 student, lost decisively to Christina Bonnetrouge in the finals, but she said she wasn't unhappy with her performance.

"I didn't win but I had a lot of fun playing," Collison said. "I don't play often, actually. I started playing in the the seventh grade.

"Back then I was interested in playing every sport I came across, like soccer and basketball. I wasn't good at that stuff, but I was good at badminton. I just felt confident with it."

Collison said she felt "overmatched" against Bonnetrouge, but added "with a little more practice I could probably get a higher score.

"We don't have badminton often at the school. It used to be a big thing around here and now it's not. I think it's awesome that we're trying to get it back into motion," she said.

Skinner echoed those comments. He's also an irregular badminton player who decided to play in the tournament on a whim.

"It's been great," he said following his elimination. "I've learned some new stuff, had a lot of fun and had some great experiences.

"It's the first time I've ever played badminton in an actual competition so it was a lot of fun."

Skinner said he's generally only played in gym class, although he's now joined the school team.

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