Among the sounds of shoes squeaking on the courts, shuttles hitting rackets and scores being shouted across nets, cheers can be heard. The gym goes quiet as teammates announce “Sam made it to state!” Senior Samantha Stapleton has just qualified for state for the 2026 IHSA Girls Badminton State Tournament, making her a two year qualifier.
While many high school badminton state qualifiers start their training at a young age, Stapleton began her badminton journey in seventh grade and did not participate in official tournaments until her freshmen year of high school. Growing up she participated in multiple sports, with tennis being her primary focus. Her interest and skills in badminton developed after her first high school season.
“At the beginning of high school, I didn’t really understand strategy, and I just kind of hit the birdie wherever, but now I understand what a good shot is and how to win games faster,” Stapleton said.
Stapleton has been the No. 1 varsity singles player for three years. She is most proud of going to state two years in a row and being able to play with her friends throughout the years. However, badminton is also a mental game, and being first on the lineup often means playing state qualifiers or top finishers.
“I mostly try and forget about the points I lost, because it’s not gonna be very helpful to be like ‘oh my gosh, I missed a shot’ I just try to focus on winning the next game and taking my losses as ways to learn for next time,” Stapleton said.
As a multisport athlete, Stapleton has noticed that oftentimes badminton often receives a negative reputation in comparison to many other sports.
“Badminton is definitely a hated on sport. I’ve had lots of people say ‘oh, I could beat you in a game’ or ‘it doesn’t take that much athletic ability’, but they’ve been playing gym class badminton, which is not an accurate representation of what the sport is really like,” Stapleton said.
Samantha Stapleton’s mom, Suzette Stapleton, grew up playing tennis and is still a competitive player. She has grown an appreciation and understanding for badminton after watching her daughter play, and has a similar opinion regarding how badminton is viewed.
“I think people view it as a slow paced game because it’s something you play outside in summer backyards. If anyone has watched badminton in person, you understand that it’s a high intensity sport where for 20 to 30 minutes you are doing fast paced rallies, that the birdie can average over 80 mph”, Suzette Stapleton said.
Suzette Stapleton reflected on the badminton community in and around Downers Grove South, which she believes is small but growing. She believes this is partially due to the popularity of the Midwest Badminton Club, where Samantha Stapleton trains in the off season.
“Badminton is not a well known sport in the community in general. With Midwest Badminton building a facility in the community, that has built awareness of the sport. I think the last couple of years with the team members qualifying for state, it has been getting more recognition at DGS,” Suzette Stapleton.
Suzette Stapleton hopes that more freshmen realize that they don’t need to have familiarity with the sport of badminton to join the team, and that badminton is a great way to meet people and participate in high school activities.
Samantha Stapleton has higher expectations for herself at state this year than she did going into state her junior year.
“My goals are to try and make it two rounds farther than I did last year, because I want to get to the top 16, because that means I make it to Allstate. I don’t know if that will happen, but wherever I place, I’m gonna be happy because I still made it to state. I’m just gonna enjoy my last time playing high school badminton,” Samantha Stapleton said.
Samantha Stapleton will start playing in the IHSA Girls Badminton State Tournament on Friday, May 15.
