The Durango Demons girls tennis team was undefeated in dual matches heading into its first home match Friday against Grand Junction. With two matches left on the court, and the last DHS doubles team struggling, senior Maggie Hackett needed to pull off an impressive comeback to save the day for the Demons – and she did.
The Durango No. 2 singles player dropped the opening set to opponent Isabel Manzanares, 6-4, but rallied to win the second set 6-3 and pulled out the win in an intense 11-9 tiebreaker. Her victory marked the fourth win of the day for DHS and proved to be the deciding match, as the Demons beat the Tigers 4-3.
“I was getting kind of frustrated there in the first set because she had a really good slice shot,” Hackett said.
“It got in my head there for a little bit, but I do better when I get mad, and eventually got it figured out. I didn’t realize that our match was the decisive match until it was over, so I’m glad I was able to pull it out.”
Bayfield High School freshman and DHS No. 1 singles player Mavis Edwards made quick work of her opponent to start the day off right for Durango. Edwards pulled away from the Tigers’ top singles player, Julianna Campos, to win 6-4, 6-0. The tall lefty got off to a fast start with a 4-1 lead in the first set, but Campos came back to cut the deficit to 5-4.
“I had a pretty easy time for a while at the start, but she started hitting these tough slice shots that gave me some problems,” Edwards said.
“Coach (Daniella)Phillis suggested that I start hitting it a little bit deeper and that really made a difference.”
Edwards won the first set 6-4 and steamrolled her opponent 6-0 in the second set to give the Demons a 1-0 lead.
No. 3 singles player Emma Hackett, Maggie’s younger sister, fought hard in her match but came up short in a well-played match 6-3, 6-4 to Grand Junction’s Kamryn Peltier.
The Hackett sisters play side by side, and clearly feed off of each other. When Emma fell short, she immediately went to pull her sister through in what became such a huge match for the team.
“It’s pretty much the best thing ever,” Maggie Hackett said of playing alongside her sister. “I don’t think it would go too well if we were playing doubles, but playing our own matches next to each other is awesome.”
“I’m super proud of her,” Emma Hackett said of her sister’s win. “She always has the longest matches and she’s a tough competitor. She really pulled through and got the win for us.”
The Hacketts aren’t the only sisters on the DHS team as Chloe and Emily West play doubles for the Demons. Chloe, and partner Jenna Engleken dropped the No. 1 singles match 6-4, 6-1 to Tigers’ top duo of Bree Call and Elise Larson. Durango’s No. 2 double team of Emily West and Lily Chick stormed through Lauren Lewis and Emily Starritt 6-2, 6-1 to add another win for the Demons.
“The key for us is staying positive through the tough times and communicating well,” Emily West said.
“I think it came down to using the lob and getting our serves in,” Chick said. “We forced them into making a few mistakes and it turned out well for us.”
Another Demons win came from No. 3 doubles team Ruby DeCora and Emma Jaber. The partners smashed the Tigers team of Royanna Crawford and Sydney Tuttle 6-1, 6-1 with great teamwork.
“Part of being successful in doubles is realizing that it’s not a singles game anymore and you have to live with the ups and downs that go with having a partner,” Jaber said. “For example, I know that Ruby does this awesome slice shot down the side literally every time she gets the chance and I’ve learned to adapt to it. We’ve become a really good team because we’ve gotten to know each other’s game like that.”
The Demons’ No. 4 double team came up short 6-4, 6-2, but the damage had already been done and Maggie Hackett’s win secured another team victory for Durango.
“There were a lot of momentum swings in Maggie’s match so it came down to making the proper adjustments,” Durango head coach Daniella Phillis said. “Maggie is also a really competitive girl, so that always helps too. I think, as a team, we’re picking up our skill set and learning how to use different strategies. The girls are fast learners and I think that’s why we’ve been so successful up to this point.”
Durango will try to keep its winning ways going at 9 a.m. Saturday against Fruita Monument.
jfries@durangoherald.com
