Boréal badminton something of a family dynasty

The badminton transition at Collège Boréal has been a smooth one - for very good reason.

After years of having Lynn Michel as the face of the program, with the late Dennis Dionne, more often than not, at her side, it was time to move on. In stepped Mike Dionne, an accomplished former player, full of youthful enthusiasm, and the badminton wisdom that was imparted by way of his father.

For a second straight year, the new coach has guided at least one athlete on to provincial championships, as the women's doubles team of Michelle Kozlowskyj and Katelynn Gravelle finished in third place at regionals, earning a berth in the OCAA Championships at Seneca.

"The team itself was on par with last year, but with more first year players," said Dionne. "The only real difference this year, was that competition at other schools was really amped up." Yet within the first few tournaments, the graduate of Lasalle Secondary realized the potential he had to work with.

"I was fairly confident that at least someone would make provincials," stated Dionne. "I had hoped that we would have three players who moved on, but two did." The mixed doubles team came up one placement short, finishing fourth.

The addition of Kozlowskyj, a city champ dating back to her days with the Sacré-Coeur Griffons, along with some key returning vets, provided a base for Dionne and his assistant coaches, Valerie Breen, Justin Richardson and Marquis Martel.

"I knew she had a good skill level, she had done well at high school NOSSA and OFSAA," said Dionne. "I didn't expect her to do as well as she did."

Her first few tournaments of OCAA matchups would see Kozlowskyj advance through to the quarter-finals in ladies singles play, a noteworthy accomplishment given the depth of that field.

"Michelle would have made provincials playing singles or mixed,” he said.

But it was in the women's doubles field that Dionne saw the most potential, combining with Gravelle, a native of Timmins with collegiate experience already on her resume.

They were exactly the type of tandem upon which Boréal have come to depend.

"Every year, there seems to be a contingent of athletes that come from the northern parts of Ontario to Boréal," said Dionne."We've had a number of good athletes from Timmins, Cochrane, Kapuskasing. The talent is there - it's a matter of getting them out, and having them stay."

And like the coaches who preceded him at the small francophone campus, Dionne is confident in a formula of success, even against adversaries who have benefitted from far better competition leading into their jump to the OCAA.

"Ultimately, I can teach them a number of things," he said. "It's how much of an effort they want to put in. Attitude and effort level, to me, are the biggest things. With that, I can get them knocking on the door at provincials."

Just as his predecessors had done before him. Still with some familiar badminton names, the local grouping were at the top of the class again last weekend, as a Sudbury crew travelled north for the Porcupine Open. Kozlowskyj captured the ladies singles event, with Boreal/Cambrian connections dominating in doubles play.

Mike Dionne and Tim Yu took top spot in men's doubles, beating Julien Belanger and Marquis Martel in the final. The ladies doubles title was claimed by the duo of Valerie Breen and Jenna Dupuis, while the Dionne/Breen partnership walked away with mixed doubles bragging rights, besting the team of Belanger/Dupuis.