Glendale's Badon wins 3C2A Men's Singles Championship; Irvine Valley's Grove and Pardo tops in doubles

April 29, 2024

OJAI - The annual tennis tournament held in Ojai is highly anticipated and marked by a sense of awe and reverence by spectators and players alike.

The opportunity to become a part of this tournament's storied history is a rare and cherished accomplishment and one that is held in the highest regard by the tennis community. As spectators traverse the grounds, they are reminded of the greats who have earned a place in the tennis sports pantheon, such as Billie Jean King, Bobby Riggs, the Bryan Brothers, Michael Chang, Jimmy Connors, and Stan Smith.

This year, two players, Jean-Baptiste Badon from Glendale College and Sebastian Junghanns from Bakersfield College, had the opportunity to cement their place in Ojai's history. Both players had unique journeys to the 3C2A Men's Tennis Singles Championship match, with Badon winning two relatively easy victories over Arav Waghray and Cody Ray Emery on Saturday. Meanwhile, Junghanns' quarterfinal match lasted over three hours, defeating Adam Ridaoui 7-6, 3-6, 6-4. Shortly after, Junghanns faced another challenging match against Nick Grove of Irvine Valley College, winning 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. Junghanns also participated in a long and fiercely contested doubles match in the quarterfinals, ultimately falling to Julian Tellez and Rafael Matias.

The battle between Badon and Junghanns began at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday in the prestigious grounds of Libbey Park. The weather was once again perfect: 69 degrees and no wind. Badon quickly took control of the match, dictating the rallies with his signature cross-court forehands that pulled Junghanns deep and wide. Badon kept Junghanns off balance, leaving him with limited chances to play his game style. Badon surged ahead with a 5-2 lead in no time.

Despite being down in the match, Junghanns fought with all the energy he had left, bringing the match on serve, 4-5. Junghanns gained a 40-love advantage and seemed on his way to tying the match at 5-5. However, Badon countered with three consecutive points to level the game score at deuce. Then, Junghanns attempted a drop shot volley, clipping the top of the net, which gave Badon his second set point opportunity. After a Junghanns approach shot that landed short, Badon was able to strike a clean low cross-court passing shot to earn the first set 6-4.

Junghanns struggled at the start of the second set, displaying signs of fatigue from the three rounds he had played the day before. Badon capitalized on this and continued to apply pressure, playing intelligently and opting to keep the ball in play, further tiring Junghanns. Down 0-4 in the second set, Junghanns requested a medical timeout and summoned the trainer. Play resumed shortly afterward. Badon extended his lead, bringing the set to 5-0. At 5-0, after a sharp and powerful cross-court backhand shot, Badon cemented his place among the sport’s greats as an Ojai Tennis Tournament Champion.

In the men's doubles finals, the Glendale College tandem of Adam Ridaoui and Lance Morgan could not overcome the performance and serving of Nick Grove and Luciano Pardo from Irvine Valley College. The entertaining match was played with the traditional doubles style, with short rallies consisting of no more than four shots, with power being the decisive factor. Ultimately, Grove and Pardo emerged as the victors in a thrilling match, prevailing 7-5, 6-7, 7-5.

(Bo Navarro, CCSIA)