Lepcin makes the leap to state medal contender

Playing badminton in the backyard was a lot of fun for Ashley Lepcin.

So, Lepcin decided to give it a shot competitively as a freshman at Wheeling. But she didn't vault to the forefront of future plans.

"She was playing exhibition matches her first year and I didn't even know her," said Wheeling coach Carl Watschke. "She wasn't even on the radar."

But Lepcin worked to improve and the senior is now in the spotlight with the best players in Illinois.

Lepcin earned a 9-12 singles seed for this weekend's state tournament in Charleston and hopes to return as the first top-six medalist in school history.

"I really want to make it to the second day," said Lepcin, who suffered 3 of her 4 losses to top seed Jenna Langhorst of Fremd. "My ultimate goal is to medal."

Lepcin was the top seed in doubles last year with Michelle Lee but they were knocked out in the consolation quarterfinals. Lepcin hopes that experience will pay off this time.

"Last year was just nerve-wracking beyond belief," Lepcin said. "It was good to go down the first year in doubles. Michelle had been there before to ease me into it because it was very overwhelming.

"I'm getting some nerves but I'm really excited just to go back there."

Returning wasn't easy for Lepcin, either. A few weeks before the season started she lunged during training and injured her right knee.

An MRI and X-ray revealed no damage that required surgery. But she's had to play through pain and adjust her game to accommodate for less mobility.

"It was really scary because I thought there might have been tears," Lepcin said. "But the good news was there were no tears and I could play if I could tolerate it."

So far, so good for the 4.5 student on a 5.0 grade-point scale who plans to focus on math and science at Illinois-Chicago.

And Lepcin's focus didn't disappear in a tough sectional title match where she had to overcome a big third-game deficit to beat Palatine's Katerina Walker.

"That was a good confidence booster," Lepcin said.

"It showed a lot about her heart," Watschke said. "That's what it's going to take because she'll really have to step up her game to get the first 3 wins (today)."

Which would prove Lepcin has come a long way from her backyard to Charleston.