By Larry Moko
Estelle Buist and Alyssa Cerovac of the Bishop Tonnos Titans have a unique way of celebrating success on the badminton court.
Each time the Grade 12 doubles partners score a point they whack their racquets together.
And Wednesday, during Day 1 of the Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic senior high school badminton championships at Cathedral, they did a lot of that high-five equipment tapping.
Buist and Cerovac won the girls' doubles championship, defeating Bishop Ryan's Sofia Celani and Alma Albana in the final.
It was the first senior doubles title for the BT duo after they combined to take top honours at the junior level two years ago.
When asked whether badminton racquet-touching is similar to the hand-slapping habit the two OFSAA veterans exhibit after every point on the volleyball court, Cerovac said: "Totally."
Cerovac will be attending Cleveland State University on a volleyball scholarship next season and Buist is still considering her options in the sport at the university level.
"I think the reason Estelle and I do so well is because of how long we've been playing volleyball together," Cerovac said. "We've been playing since we were eight years old."
Tonnos coach Christina DiFranco said teamwork, communication and athletic skills that are transferable make Cerovac and Buist a dynamic pair.
"They're fun to watch," DiFranco added.
Due to a prior commitment, however, Buist and Cerovac have bowed out of the upcoming Golden Horseshoe Athletic Conference tournament in Milton. Taking their place will be third-place finishers Jianna Lemmen and Sophia Lopez-Ramirez of the Cathedral Gaels.
In other Day 1 action, the boys' singles category saw separate gold-medal winners declared for the first time. Alan Varghese of the St. John Henry Newman Cardinals won the open division while Dario Vlasic of the Bishop Ryan Celtics advanced among high school players.
Varghese is the board's only open player. So for GHAC on April 23 at Bishop Reding, he'll be competing in an open event while Vlasic takes on high school players.
Third-place finisher Tommy Nguyen of Cathedral also qualifies for GHAC boys' singles as a result.
"Alan is weight-training now," Newman coach Tom Campanella said of the three-time defending senior singles champion. "So he's a lot stronger but just as accurate.
"He did well at GHAC the last two years. In a sense, it's much better that he does compete as an open player. The better player comes out in him when he's challenged."
Varghese was born in India and has lived in Saudi Arabia.
"I'm a full-time badminton coach now," said Varghese, who formerly was a ranked club player in Ontario. "I coach like six times a week at multiple locations."
Varghese defeated Vlasic -- the 2025 junior champion -- twice en route to this year's tournament title.
"It was a tough win," Varghese said. "I was focused on attacking more."
The only other Day 1 competition was held for boys' doubles. And in the final, gold went to Sean Aton and Christian Maligalig of Cathedral. The Gaels entry prevailed over Jaxon Marshall and Keiran Major of the St. Thomas More Knights.
It was the third-consecutive boys' double championship for Cathedral as a school.
"My mixed doubles champion from last year (Maligalig) decided to play boys' doubles this year," Gaels coach Jay Stokl said. "So he partnered with a singles player from last year (Aton) and they made it happen.
"A big shout out to the St. Thomas More players, though. They were phenomenal. Both matches against them could have gone either way."
The third and fourth-place finishers in boys' doubles were Nelson Aramburo/Andy Nguyen and Andy Lock/Ben Masotti, respectively.
Fourth place in boys' singles went to Zacharey Altura of the St. Jean de Brebeuf Braves.
In girls' doubles, Mikayla Kent and Giuliana Chiaravalloti of the Newman Cardinals ended up fourth.
Day 2 action at Cathedral on April 16 features girls' singles and mixed doubles events.
Photos by R.F. (Bob) Butrym, RFB Sport Photography
More photos on the HWCDSB Athletics Facebook Page here
