Of all the Catholic high schools throughout New York City, only one fields a Catholic High School Athletic Association badminton program, and that’s The Mary Louis Academy (TMLA), Jamaica Estates.

The Hilltoppers founded both a junior varsity and varsity team back in 2009.

The sport itself — common at summer family get-togethers — is similar to tennis, yet the ball is replaced by a birdie, and the goal is to not let it touch the ground.

Since TMLA is the only city Catholic school with badminton, the teams compete in Long Island’s Nassau-Suffolk CHSAA league, along with four other programs: St. Anthony’s H.S., South Huntington; Holy Trinity H.S., Hicksville; St. John the Baptist H.S., West Islip; and Sacred Heart Academy, Hempstead.

What’s more unique is that TMLA’s home gymnasium is a bit too small to host matches, so every single match is on the road. Those long bus rides allow for some intense game-planning, though more so, some great opportunities for camaraderie among the student-athletes.

Each squad has 12 girls, and the vast majority had never played competitively before their freshman year. The junior varsity team focuses on learning the sport’s skills so that the players are then ready for varsity action.

“Some girls have never held a racket before,” said Richmond Hill native Ruthcelis Morales-Flores, head coach of both teams. “We have to show them how to hold it, how to do a forehand swing and a backhand swing, and how to best position themselves on the court.”

Morales-Flores, who has been at TMLA for 19 years, is also the school’s chairperson of physical education and health. As part of her curriculum, badminton is one of the units in gym class, so even though this was her first season coaching, she already had a solid foundation with the sport.

Ambika Ishmael, the program’s assistant coach, attended TMLA and played on the badminton team, so she brings in-depth knowledge and firsthand experience of playing the sport competitively at the high school level.

High school badminton matches are similar to tennis in that the students compete in singles or doubles. On the junior varsity level, it’s a best-of-five to determine a match winner, while on varsity, it’s a best-of-seven.

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Each individual match is a best of three, and whoever reaches 21 points first wins the game — and you have to win by two. So even if you win your individual match, it takes a full team effort to walk away with an overall victory.

“You definitely need agility considering how fast the sport can get,” said Mairead Kuhner, a sophomore from Lynbrook, Long Island, who plays on the junior varsity team. “You also need to have good endurance to keep your same speed and strength throughout the entire match, no matter how long it gets.”

The sport teaches important skills such as communication, teamwork, sportsmanship, quick decision-making, and integrity — since the players themselves keep score. Of these, communication, especially in doubles matches, is so essential to delivering a competitive showing.

“Badminton is a very unique sport in the sense that everyone has their own strategies when playing a match,” said Gabrielle Wilson, a senior from Jamaica, Queens, on the varsity squad. “This ranges from the different types of matches, to different serving styles, to different doubles techniques. So much can happen on such a small amount of court space.”

The season, which just wrapped up for the Hilltoppers, was a journey filled with some long road trips, good laughs, and lots of lasting memories.

“Seeing the improvement that I witnessed from the start to the end of the season was truly a pleasure,” Morales-Flores said. “I saw the girls’ development, especially with their communication. You have to rely on your partner.

“It’s great to teach them, but to also learn alongside them.”

As the only Catholic high school in the city to sport a badminton team, TMLA has done a fine job of representing the diocese — and particularly the borough of Queens.

The shared experience of playing a sport less commonplace than soccer, basketball, lacrosse, volleyball, track, golf, swimming, or softball has these Hilltoppers creating friendships they’ll cherish long after their time in high school.

That’s what it’s all about.