It has been an interesting start to the season for the Durango High School girls tennis team, and, regardless of how they fared in the Western Slope Open to start the season, the Demons are just glad to be playing.
Durango took to the courts with some of the top talent in the state and did well for a team that didn’t know if they’d have a coach just a few weeks ago. Longtime head coach Dave Weisfeldt accompanied the team to Grand Junction to start the season, but new coaches Sue Lawton and Linda Fitts-Liberman will be taking care of the duties going forward.
“It’s just been a fantastic start, and I’m so proud of these girls,” Weisfeldt said. “For awhile, the upperclassmen were orchestrating the practice,s and they’re going to have to help the new coaches in this process, too. With everything going on, it was a great start to the season.”
Durango dropped its opening dual of the season 4-3 to Steamboat Springs and competed in Grand Junction’s Western Slope Open on Friday and Saturday. After some tough Friday matches, the Demons took a shot in consolation brackets in Saturday’s action.
There was some success on the doubles side for Durango. Ellie Gervais and Hailee Pritchard dominated their first match with a 6-0 win and were ahead 4-1 in the No. 2 doubles consolation final against Montrose before falling 7-6 in a tiebreaker.
The No. 3 team of Chloe and Emily West wouldn’t be denied, however, as they won the No. 3 consolation bracket with wins against Grand Junction and Fruita.
“They call this tournament a “learning tournament,” and that’s exactly what it was,” Weisfeldt said. “The girls got to get outside and compete, and I had to go over the tiebreak rules again to make sure everyone remembered. It’s always a fun way to start and get in the swing of things.”
The Demons will host Montezuma-Cortez at 4 p.m. Tuesday at Durango High School.
jfries@durangoherald.com
