Cheryl Carton White

Mixed Doubles 1984

PRESENTED BY JUDIANNE KELLY:

I'm here tonight to honor Cheryl Carton White for her accomplishments in one of the fastest sports in the field of athletics.

Have you ever fallen into something on a whim? Well, that is exactly what happened to Cheryl when she was a sophomore at Kearney High School, in San Diego, CA.

She was a total tomboy, playing volleyball, field hockey, softball and a little tennis. Then one of her best friends talked her into going out for the badminton team. Of course, Cheryl had played at picnics and in backyards and she thought she was pretty good at "keeping it going." Well, as time passed she was certainly in for a surprise. She played doubles that first year and barely made the team. The next two years she played singles. During her senior year in 1971, she won the San Diego section CIF singles and doubles championships, and her school won the team championship. She also won her first 'real' tournament that year, a San Diego Badminton Club Novice tournament. As you can see, Cheryl became a real student of the game, making great strides in a short amount of time. The major influence on her at the time was Dick Donscheski, who was a math teacher and assistant coach at her high school and also president of the San Diego Badminton Club.

After high school Cheryl settled on badminton as her main sport and started playing at the San Diego Badminton Club while attending college at UC San Diego. In the mid-seventies, she entered the 'A' ranks and began playing often at Manhattan Beach and Pasadena Badminton Clubs. She was fortunate to begin training with Sombat Dhammabusaya, who raised her game to its highest level.

Cheryl was good from the start; she had a great overhead stroke; she played smart; she was a clever strategist; she demonstrated an ability to win and was a precise shot maker. She was always a good sport with a great attitude and was very self-assured. She was a very competitive player and never displayed an attitude on the court. I would look at Cheryl across the net and think, "Nothing is going to make this person lose control." There was nothing not to like about her-I tried because sometimes in a close match it helps your fight, your desire to win, it gives you the edge if you can find something negative about your opponent. I tried-there just wasn't anything not to like about Cheryl.

Her greatest badminton memory was being on the Uber Cup team from 1977 to 1978 when we won our zone and went on to New Zealand. Her second most memorable badminton experience was with me when we went to Taiwan and Japan. I had purchased cowboy hats as a gift for our hosts, and we were so busy trying them on and talking a mile a minute that we missed our plane. Cheryl's biggest disappointment throughout her career in badminton was never winning a U.S. Nationals doubles title with Vicki Toutz. She retired in 1986 due to a rotator cuff injury and she has not played badminton since.

There were many great people who took Cheryl under their wing and helped her tremendously over the years, providing both inspiration and instruction. She especially remembers Waldo Lyon, Carlene Starkey, Ann and Wally Foy, Ray Park and of course Dave Carton.

So tonight, we're here to honor Cheryl. Let me share with you just a few of her many badminton accomplishments:

-- 5- times U. S. National Singles Champion ranging from 1978-84
-- U.S. National Mixed Doubles Champion in 1984
-- Uber Cup team 4 times from 1978-1984. She had wins over Taiwan, New Zealand and Peru
-- 2- time Devlin Cup Team
-- 1983 Ken Davidson Memorial Sportsmanship Award

Congratulations, Cheryl.