The Durango High School girls tennis team went undefeated in its first round of matches Wednesday, then a doubles team kept winning to earn itself a spot in today’s regional final.
The Demons went 6-0 in the opening round of the Class 4A Region 8 championships, and the No. 1 doubles team of Meredith Nass and Kit Hackett kept the momentum going. If the duo beats Steamboat today in Grand Junction, they’ll be heading to CHSAA Class 4A Girls State Tennis Tournament in Pueblo next weekend as regional champions.
“Pretty exciting first day (Tuesday),” first year DHS head coach Laura Ehlers said.
To get to the title match, Nass and Hackett got a first-round bye, then beat Cortez 6-4, 6-4. They finished up play Tuesday with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Aspen.
In the No. 1 singles spot, Erin Neale has a chance to place in the top three.
She beat Cortez 6-3, 7-6 (7-2) to start the tournament, before losing to No. 1 ranked Steamboat 6-1, 6-0.
Neale rebounded with a 6-1, 6-3 victory over Montrose to stave off elimination.
No. 2 singles player Sarah Harrelson finds herself in the same situation today after beating Roaring Fork 6-0, 6-0 in the opening round.
She followed it with a win over Paonia (6-4, 6-3), then lost her third match to Steamboat – another No. 1 seed – 6-1, 7-5.
No. 3 singles Jamie Wanzek missed the tournament with an ankle injury.
The No. 2 doubles team of Rachel Redders and Anna Wright was the first of two DHS teams to get eliminated Tuesday. After winning their gruelling first round against Delta 7-5, 7-6 (7-3), they beat Cortez 6-2, 6-2, then lost to Steamboat and Roaring Fork, 6-1, 6-2 and 7-5, 6-3, respectively.
No. 4 doubles also were eliminated but with only one loss. Rachel Cooper and Eva Eckstein beat Glenwood 6-3, 6-2, then lost to Cortez 6-2, 6-2. Because Cortez lost in the next round, the Demons bowed out early.
But in between, the No. 3s, Hannah Liberman and Jenni Snowberger, kept one more DHS team alive, beating Vail Mountain 1-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-2), losing to Steamboat 6-2, 6-3, then beating Montrose 6-4, 6-4.
“The girls looked so good,” Ehlers said. “It was a different vibe (Tuesday). ... And just really good tennis, and the results show it.”
Round 2 of the tournament starts at 9 a.m. today in Grand Junction.
heraldsports@durangoherald.com
