Su Meh was well familiar with St. Paul Johnson’s towering badminton legacy when she joined the team as a freshman in 2022. Five Governors had been crowned singles state champions, and the program holds a Minnesota-best 12 team state titles.
Meh added another chapter to Johnson’s storied run in the sport with a singles state championship of her own on May 15. She also helped the Governors upset Como Park and finish second in the prior day’s team state tournament.
For the senior, it was an achievement years in the making. First, she bided her time as an underclassman, putting in work behind the scenes as upperclassmen held the limelight.
“Honestly, the journey has been rough, very rough,” Meh said. “It was very hard to place at the top being an underclassman, but, honestly, I’m just so happy.”
Nuhchi Chah, the Governors badminton coach, watched as Meh came out of her shell and developed into one of the state’s premier players with each passing season. By her senior year, Meh was the state’s top-ranked singles player.
Meh held that crown for six of eight weeks in the regular season, but a string of losses knocked Meh off her perch. Ultimately, that adversity made the St. Paul City Conference champion a battle-tested competitor. It was just what Meh needed amid a grueling state title push.
“It made me realize that I can lose,” Meh said. “But at the same time, I can win. So, it really scared me, but that’s the human nature of sports. There’s wins and losses. You just gotta keep doing it.”
Entering her final individual state tournament as the top singles seed, Meh wouldn’t be denied as she set up a final bout with St. Paul Harding’s Gaozhia Vue. Meh and Vue set a new state tournament record with 127 combined points in a three-set thriller.