GREELEY — Dawson senior Maggie Berry has has not lost a set all year, and she’s determined to keep that streak.
“It’s definitely been in my mind,” Berry said. “When you’re on a roll, if I lose a set it’s okay, but there’s a part of me that’s like, ‘I’ve got to keep up this streak.’ People normally tell me that I play like I’m in a rush to get somewhere.”
If Berry keeps the streak during the Class 3A state tournament, she will do something no player at Dawson has done before — win an individual girls tennis state championship.
“That would be amazing and very humbling to be the first champion,” Berry said. “I’d love to be that, so hopefully I can rest up and play my best tomorrow.”
Well, Berry is already doing something she herself has never done before.
“It’s going really well,” Berry said. “I’m really enjoying being here with the team and having their support and supporting them. Everyone that I’ve played has been so nice. Overall, it’s been a joyous experience.”
This is the first year Berry has qualified for state, and what a ride it has been.
(Cannon Casey/CHSAANow.com)
She took down St. Mary’s Academy’s Sarah Emmanuel 6-1, 6-1 and Fountain Valley’s Delaney DeMott 6-0, 6-1 to get to the semifinals.
“What’s working for me, I think, is not letting the other players and cheers get to my mind,” Berry said. “Just sort of isolating myself. Also, analyzing my opponent’s plays early on in the game and adjusting mine to oppose theirs.”
Berry then beat Holy Family senior Lindsey Bovine 6-1, 6-3 to advance to the finals of No. 3 singles.
“That match was all about consistency. She was a very consistent player,” Berry said. “I tend to be a consistent player as well, so it was really long games. It bubbled down to who could last longest. Who could keep it in the longest. And, occasionally getting up to the net and sneaking in those slice valleys.”
At times, Berry had to stop serving to wait and give Bovine time to get set.
“I play fast,” Berry said. “I don’t know why because there’s no rush, but it’s how I play. I like to be speedy.”
Berry’s speedy play has Dawson in a great position. She’ll play Rachel Molnar from D’Evelyn for the No. 3 singles title.
Freshman Bridget Bell also has a shot to be the first individual champion after she advanced to the No. 2 singles finals over Steamboat Springs’ Maddie Thompson.
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(Cannon Casey/CHSAANow.com)
D’Evelyn leads team race heading into final day
D’Evelyn distanced itself from the field early on Friday after three teams were locked at the top to start the day, but Colorado Academy stormed back in playbacks to close the lead.
Heading into the final day of the 3A girls tennis state tournament, D’Evelyn is in the lead with 51 points. Colorado Academy and Dawson are in second and third with 49 and 44, respectively.
Colorado Academy will need to do some work Saturday to steal the team title from D’Evelyn as the Jaguars have a firm grip on the competition. The Mustangs have three players in the finals, while D’Evelyn has five. The two teams will face off in No. 4 doubles as Charity Perks and Keri Jennings take on Alexandra Ford and Story Wolf-Tinsman.
(Cannon Casey/CHSAANow.com)
Steamboat Springs’ Mae Thorp will face off against Colorado Academy’s Sammy Moore-Thomson for the No. 1 singles title. Both Thorp and Moore-Thomson are freshmen.
In No. 1 doubles, it’s Eaton’s Courtney Leafgren and Shelby Naill vs. D’Evelyn’s Angi Reed and Taylor Whatley.
Eaton has not had a doubles champion since 1996.
The No. 2 singles matchup is set with Colorado Academy junior Savannah Mease vs. Bell.
The last singles champion for Colorado Academy was Jessika Mozia in 2012.
D’Evelyn’s No. 2 doubles tandum Cammy Lee and Elisa Dean face Holy Family’s Maren Steiner and Caroline Smolky.
Holy Family has two runner-up finishes in doubles, but has not been able to break through to win the title. Brianna Barlett and An Tran were the last tandem to make it to the title.
D’Evelyn and Holy Family will again be matched up in the No. 3 doubles title with Maggie Hime/Olivia Sanders vs. Leah Schwartz/Camilla Ruiz.
DENVER — Ky Ecton had a tough path to return to the final. But she fought her way through it, earning every bit of her trip back.
The Poudre junior, runner-up in No. 1 Singles at the Class 5A girls tennis state tournament last season, won a marathon match against Mountain Vista senior Casey Zhong in Friday’s semifinals. After dropping the first set 7-6, she rallied to win the final two 6-4 and 6-0.
The match lasted two-and-a-half hours.
“I don’t like to listen to all the pressure,” Ecton said of the expectation that she get back to the final. “I’m here to play tennis. I’m here to do what I like to do, and to have fun. And having my team behind me, just being like, ‘You’re just Ky,’ it brings me back down to Earth.”
Ecton actually had leads of 4-1 and 5-2 in the first set before Zhong rallied to win it.
“Casey played amazing,” Ecton said. “(When she started to come back), I really couldn’t do anything. She was playing awesome. But I was like, ‘I can come back.’”
Ecton trailed 3-2 in the second set but eventually took a 4-3 lead before winning 6-4.
“Throughout my season, I’ve had quite a few three-setters at invitationals, so I know how to come back from losing the first set,” Ecton added. “I was down 2-3, and I was like, ‘Oh no.’ Going up 4-3 was huge, and winning that second set really gave me confidence going into the third.
“I feel like once you go into the third set, it’s pretty much a whole new match. You never know what’s going to happen out there. I just kind of forgot about it and tried to restart.”
Anshika Singh. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)
In that third set, Ecton cruised to a 6-0 win to secure her spot in the final for a second-straight season. She will face a fellow junior in Smoky Hill’s Anshika Singh.
Singh beat ThunderRidge freshman Veronika Bruetting 6-1, 6-2 in the semifinals as she seeks to become her school’s first individual champion since 1987.
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Team race tightens
The race for the 5A team championship this spring is one of the closest in recent memory.
Perennial power Cherry Creek entered the day atop the leaderboard, but at various times on Friday, Ponderosa and Mountain Vista took turns at the top.
After the second day of competition, the Bruins ended up in the team lead with 51 points. Mountain Vista is in second with 45, and Ponderosa (37 points) is third. Denver East (24 points) and defending champ Fairview (17) round out the top five.
Cherry Creek has three positions playing in finals on Saturday, while Mountain Vista and Ponderosa each have two. Mountain Vista and Ponderosa face one another in the No. 2 Singles final, and the No. 1 Doubles final.
Mountain Vista and Cherry Creek each also have players in contention in three third-place matches, and Ponderosa has one.
Cherry Creek and Mountain Vista are both in play for the overall championship on Saturday, while Ponderosa can finish as high as second.
Each individual championship is worth three points in the team race, and each third-place finish is worth two points.
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Notables
Ponderosa senior Claire Cox won her semifinal match 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (6) at No. 2 singles. She was down 5-1 in the third set at one point. Cox will face Mountain Vista’s Madi Allen in the final.
Mountain Vista stayed in contention in the team race thanks to Casey Zhong’s win in the No. 1 Singles consolation semifinals. She earned the Golden Eagles seven points with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Ponderosa’s Hana Kimmey.
All finals and third-place matches will begin at 9 a.m. on Saturday at Gates Tennis Center.
PUEBLO — KRDO sports director Rob Namnoum has dubbed Cheyenne Mountain’s No. 1 doubles group the Law Firm of Ahrendsen and Arenson.
It’s not hard to understand why.
Forget about Mike McDivitt or Frank Azar for one weekend each May. Casey Ahrendsen and Ally Arenson run the courts in Pueblo.
“It’s funny,” Arenson said. “But we’re not going to (practice law). She wants to go into biology and I want to go into engineering.”
The Indians’ top doubles team beat Discovery Canyon’s Hunter Jones and Lizzie McCurdy on Friday to advance to the No. 1 doubles final of the Class 4A state tennis tournament. Saturday morning, they’ll take the courts at Pueblo City Park looking to claim their fourth state title together.
And as odd as it may sound, playing well at state still isn’t routine for them. Each time they take the court, they understand that the wins don’t come if they aren’t working in sync and consistently performing at a high level.
Casey Ahrendsen (left) and Ally Arenson. (Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
“Each day is a new day and each match is a new match,” Ahrendsen said. “Every point is completely different. It’s not a daily thing.”
Typically, just as focused as they are on themselves, they also keep their focus on the overall team title. That won’t be a worry on Saturday.
In a three-set thriller on Friday, Corey Patton Lossner beat Niwot’s Julia Pentz, putting the Indians at 66. At the conclusion of semifinals, no other team could score more than 58. Cheyenne Mountain clinched its ninth-straight team championship with a day to spare.
“There’s a lot of pressure off everybody,” Indians coach David Adams said. “But as always, everybody wants to finish on a high note.”
Meaning everybody needs to be playing on Saturday. It took Morgan Hall winning in playbacks to get there, but Cheyenne Mountain has all seven positions competing on the final day.
Hall was the only one not to reach a final as she fell to Kent Denver’s Josie Schaffer 6-2, 6-0 in the semis.
Schaffer, the defending No. 1 singles champion, gets a shot to go back-to-back. She beat Hall in the semifinals last year, so she knew going in that advancing was no easy task.
“It was really hard,” Schaffer said. “My game plan was just to play my game and whatever happens, happens. I know Morgan, I play with her all the time. She’s a great player so I just wanted to go out and have fun.”
Schaffer will square off against Durango’s Mavis Edwards, a freshman making her first appearance in the state tournament.
It will be a unique feeling heading into Saturday as most matches will have individual focus rather than a focus on team standings.
It takes pressure off players like the Law Firm and allow them to concentrate on what they need to do for themselves and not get wrapped up in what is happening on the surrounding courts.
The problem is that Cheyenne is proving to be tight group of kids. It’s nearly impossible to not stress out about each other and keep an eye on what else is going on.
“We want them to do just as well,” Arenson said. “Once we step off the court – even when we’re on the court – we’ll be looking at our other team members’ matches and we really want them to win.”
GREELEY — It’s one accomplishment to be a four-sport athlete in high school.
It’s another to be a state qualifier in three of those — but to do it as a freshman?
Kate Griffin plays tennis, golf, basketball and runs cross country at Colorado Springs School. She’s a state qualifier in tennis, golf and cross country a freshman.
“The fact that I play so many sports is cool, and I think it’s cool that I can make it as a freshman,” Griffin said. “I don’t want to brag, but I think it’s a cool experience to be able to say that I went to state as a freshman playing 18-year-olds.
“I put a lot of time and effort into this, so it’s really gratifying and nice to have it pay off even if I don’t do as well as I want to. It’s an honor and a privilege to be here.”
The ability to balance school, four sports and simply everyday life speaks for itself in terms of Griffin’s personality and work ethic. She cherishes every opportunity and just loves to do it.
“I enjoy practicing. It’s something that I love to do,” Griffin said. “There’s really not a lot of time for other things that teenagers do. I enjoy doing it.”
And, it’s always nice to see the payoff from practicing day-in and day-out.
“I like winning. I’m going to be honest with you,” Griffin said. “I like the feeling of winning. I always play for that, I play because I like it, I play because I like competition.”
Griffin wouldn’t admit to a favorite sport — she just wants to be in the moment.
(Cannon Casey/CHSAANow.com)
“I can’t pick a favorite sport,” Griffin said. “The sport that I’m currently playing would probably be the best answer for that. I enjoy every one of them, that’s why I play so many.”
Now imagine there’s two Griffins.
Kate’s twin sister, Anna, qualified at No. 1 doubles for Coronado high school in Class 5A.
“My sister would be mad if I didn’t tell you this,” Griffin joked.
But, it’s yet another reason for Griffin to push herself even further.
“We’re so competitive with each other,” Griffin said. “We support each other so much in sports and in everything we do, but we always push each other for to go the extra mile, just for bragging rights.”
As for who has bragging rights currently, Griffin said she has the advantage over Anna.
“For tennis, I think it might be me, but we’ll see,” Griffin said.
Griffin lost her first-round match to Peak to Peak’s Trisha Somasundaram (6-1, 6-3). Somasundaram plays Colorado Academy’s Sammy Moore-Thomson in the semifinals.
“I gave it my best, she’s just super consistent,” Griffin said. “She places the ball extremely well and she hits it hard. I couldn’t do anything about it, but she’s a great player and she figured it out.”
Griffin has a shot with play-backs to get back in the tournament, but for now, it’s on to the next sport.
“That feeling that you accomplished something is a really nice feeling,” Griffin said. “I’m proud that I can say that I went to states as a freshman. Just the feeling that you did this — you can cherish it forever.”
Colorado Academy, D’Evelyn and Dawson are all tied for first with 16 points. Holy Family follows with 14.
Freshmen made a splash in the No. 1 singles spot as Steamboat Springs’ Mae Thorp upset Conifer’s Hailey Janson and Holy Family’s Julia Giltner. She’ll face Eaton’s Myiah Scott.
Sammy Moore-Thomson, of Colorado Academy, made her way to the semifinals with ease, losing just two games overall.
The two freshmen could meet in the No. 1 singles final, should they win Friday.
Angi Reed/Taylor Whatley were dominant for D’Evelyn into the No. 1 doubles semifinals. They’ll play Ellie Beeck/Alexa Rinard (Dawson).
Matched up on the other side of the bracket are Eaton’s Courtney Leafgren/Shelby Naill and Colorado Academy’s Amelia Lochhead/Hope Cherubini.
Colorado Academy stayed in the mix in No. 2 singles with Savannah Mease moving on. Mease plays University’s Camille Krammer.
Steamboat Springs’ Maddie Thompson is matched up against Dawson’s Bridget Bell.
(Cannon Casey/CHSAANow.com)
D’Evelyn again broke into the semifinals with No. 2 doubles. Cammy Lee and Elisa Dean will face Aspen’s Karina Keller and Grace Ferguson.
Maren Steiner/Caroline Smolky and Allie Blank/Isabelle Shehan, Dawson, will square off for Holy Family and Dawson.
In No. 3 singles, it’s Dawson’s Maggie Berry vs. Holy Family’s Lindsey Bovine and Colorado Springs Christian’s Nicole Pei vs. Rachel Molnar of D’Evelyn, who beat Colorado Academy’s Amanda Funk.
The No. 3 doubles semifinal field is set as Dawson’s Aria Barbour/Quin Ramos play D’Evelyn’s Maggie Hime/Olivia Sanders, while Colorado Academy’s Ann-Claire Lin/Lila Arnold face Leah Schwartz/Camilla Ruiz of Holy Family on the other side.
Charity Perks/Keri Jennings (D’Evelyn) cruised to the semifinals of No. 4 doubles. They’ll get Holy Family’s Lexi Licata/Kate Diamond.
On the other side, Sydney Booth/Mikaelee Salberg of Eaton play Alexandra Ford/Story Wolf-Tinsman of Colorado Academy.
A little more than a year ago, Hunter Barker and Sydney Waite permanently etched their names into Ponderosa tennis lore.
Now the Mustangs’ No. 1 doubles tandem is eager to show that two really is better than one.
Barker and Waite battled their way to the top at the Class 5A state girls tennis tournament last spring, capturing the Mustangs’ first state championship since Kaley Carmichael won the No. 3 singles crown back in 2009. The pair finds themselves as the team to beat in a loaded field when the 5A tournament gets rolling Thursday morning at Gates Tennis Center in Denver.
Their pursuit of the tennis version of the double-double begins against Chatfield’s Catherine Day and Kira Coffee.
“I think this year, with the pressure of defending the title, hopefully it won’t get to us,” Waite said. “It’s definitely a different feeling, but we’re going to try to go out there and play our best without overthinking it too much.”
Fortunately for Ponderosa, a senior-laden team that qualified six of its seven positions to state is a battle-tested bunch.
“My lineup is seven seniors, so I’ve had them for four years,” Mustangs coach Lisa Damico Anderson said. “Three years ago when they were all at state, they were all pretty nervous and shaky.
“They’ve really, really believed that they deserve to be there and to win it.”
Ponderosa has a strong foundation in the sport, having placed second in the team standings in 2008 and 2009 behind Cherry Creek – which won 19 consecutive 5A titles until Fairview ended that run a year ago. But the Mustangs had not finished higher than eighth place until last May, when they tied for sixth with Fossil Ridge.
Barker and Waite won a three-set battle in the semifinals with Cherry Creek before defeating Arapahoe’s Natalie Sloboth and Elizabeth Palmer in straight sets in the championship match.
“When Sydney and Hunter won state, it just enlightened everyone, especially the doubles lines,” Damico Anderson said. “If they could do it, we have the ability to do it too. They really were leaders for us in that.”
The No. 1 doubles bracket also includes Cherry Creek’s Allison Murphy and Emily Wilkins, who won the No. 2 doubles title in 2016; and Fossil Ridge’s Erinn Hogan and Lindsey Noble, the reigning No. 3 doubles champions.
Ponderosa, which competes at the 4A level in most sports but has remained in 5A for tennis, captured the Continental League title this spring and won the Region 3 tournament last weekend. Freshman Hana Kimmey, senior Claire Cox – a four-time qualifier who finished third as a freshman at No. 3 singles – and junior Amber Glantz will represent the Mustangs at state at the singles positions.
Anna Armstrong and Madison Smith won regionals at No. 2 doubles, and twins Alyssa and Jenna Lowe did the same at No. 3 doubles.
(Photo courtesy of Heidi Waite)
Barker, a three-sport athlete who will play volleyball at the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut in the fall, played No. 4 doubles as a sophomore before teaming up with Waite a year ago.
“It was really awesome to be partners with her again,” Barker said. “We already had that great chemistry last year. I hope we can bring that same energy to state again.”
Damico Anderson said what makes this group so special is how hard they work in and out of the classroom as well. The girls tennis team has received the Les Schwab Academic Team Performance award four years in a row, and the squad has combined with Legend and coach Craig Marshall to give back through the Acing Autism program at Pinery Country Club in Parker.
The players help teach children with autism how to play tennis.
“I think the reason why the team is so successful is because they are successful people in life,” Damico Anderson said. “They get it.”
Also in 5A: Fairview, Cherry Creek, Denver East, Mountain Vista and Ralston Valley each qualified its entire team to Gates Tennis Center.
A new champion will be crowned at No. 1 singles after Fairview’s Seraphin Castelino didn’t come out for her sophomore season.
The favorites include Poudre junior Ky Ecton, the runner-up at No. 1 singles last spring; Cherry Creek’s Micha Handler, who won it all at No. 2 singles; Fairview’s Sophie Pearson, the reigning No. 3 singles champion; and Mountain Vista senior Casey Zhong, a semifinalist at No. 1 singles last May.
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Class 4A preview
Cheyenne Mountain, winner of the previous eight 4A state titles, qualified its entire team for the 4A state tournament that opens Thursday at Pueblo City Park.
Defending No. 1 singles champion Josie Schaffer of Kent Denver returns, as does runner-up Sara Schoenbeck of Pueblo West.
Discovery Canyon’s Maddie Kuntzelman, who won the No. 2 singles title as a freshman, has moved up to No. 1 singles.
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Class 3A preview
Colorado Academy, which placed fifth in 4A last spring, is expected to be among the favorites in the inaugural 3A classification. (Find full draws here.) The Mustangs qualified their entire team to the meet at Centennial Park in Greeley.
D’Evelyn and Holy Family, which finished tied for sixth in 4A, also drop down to 3A and qualified all seven positions as well.
Alameda International girls tennis coach Scott Smith talks with his team during practice Tuesday afternoon. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
LAKEWOOD — Heart surgery kept Alameda International student-athlete Dana Glisan off the softball field, basketball and tennis courts during the 2015-16 school year.
Glisan was able to compete during her senior year. Playing No. 3 singles for the Pirates’ girls tennis team this spring she has become part of history. The senior along with seven of her teammates will take the court at the Class 3A girls state tournament Thursday.
“I never imagined it, but it was my dream since I was a freshman,” Glisan said about completing at state. “I’m pretty stoked.”
Alameda will send its No. 2 and 3 singles positions, along with No. 1, 2 and 3 double teams to the three-day state tournament at Centennial Park in Greeley. According to longtime Alameda coach Scott Smith, he believes it’s the first time the school has qualified players to the girls tennis state tournament in more than 30 years.
Alameda senior Dana Glisan is back on the court after having heart surgery last year. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
“This is just a really special group of young ladies. Regardless of how we finish this year, it’s been a pleasure all year,” Smith said. “Most of them are super students too. They are in honors programs and the IB diploma program.”
The Colorado High School Activities Association added the 3A classification that encompasses schools with enrollment numbers under 1,060 students this year.
“Adding another classification kind of makes us play more like schools,” Smith said.
The 3A Region 1 tournament last week featured Colorado Academy, Alameda, Bishop Machebeuf, Denver West and Skyview. The Pirates who place in the top-2 to qualify for state includes senior Makayla Romero who plays No. 2 singles.
“When I got to regionals I realized I could make it to state. It was that late,” Romero said. “It’s crazy. It’s a great accomplishment.”
Colorado Academy swept all seven first-place spots at regionals. Alameda managed to place second in the team standings.
Alameda senior Makayla Romero hits a backhand during practice Tuesday. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
“We just said, ‘Get better every week and put it all on the line at regionals.’ They did,” Smith said. “They really played well at regionals.”
Smith hopes this year’s success helps build the numbers up for his program that he has guided for more than 30 years. He had a dozen players come out for the team this season.
“It’s really good for Alameda,” Smith said. “I hope it does get our number up. We just barely had a team this year.”
The three Alameda double teams headed to Greeley are all underclassmen — No. 1 doubles: Michelle Dinh and Samantha Salazar, No. 2 doubles: Jacky Cruz and Tina Hoang, No. 3 doubles: Cindy Hoang and Ivette Sanchez.
“We’ll go up and do our best,” Smith said. “May the chips fall as they do.”
Alameda International’s girls tennis team placed second at the Class 3A Region 1 tournament. (photo provided)
The state tennis tournaments begin on Thursday, and each site faces the possibility of a weather delay on that first day. But the plan, at least for now, is to operate as though the tournaments will go on as scheduled.
Storms early this week, including rain on Wednesday, could leave the courts wet and unplayable on Thursday morning. Or they may not.
Because play might go on as scheduled, all players are coaches need to plan on showing up on Thursday morning. There is a mandatory coaches meeting at each site where further information will be communicated.
The meetings are planned for the following times at each site:
3A: 8 a.m., Centennial Park in Greeley
4A: 8:40 a.m., Pueblo City Park
5A: 8:40 a.m., Gates Tennis Center in Denver
“No matter what the weather is on Thursday, those meetings will happen,” said CHSAA assistant commissioner Bethany Brookens, who is in charge of tennis. “If it’s needed, we will communicate our plan to adjust the tournaments for weather at that time.”
Each tournament is scheduled to start at 9 a.m. on Thursday.
Forecasts for all three sites — Denver (5A), Pueblo (4A) and Greeley (3A) — show an 80-90 percent chance of rain on Wednesday, with it lasting into the early morning hours on Thursday, clearing around 9 a.m. Friday and Saturday are expected to be clear in all three cities, with temperatures in the mid-70s and low-80s.
Each tournament has a format that would allow them to condense from three to two days, if needed, Brookens said. A split to multiple sites within a tournament is also possible.
“Players should be prepared to play at multiple sites, under the lights, and indoors if necessary, in order to complete play by Saturday,” Brookens said.
The draws for the three tournaments were released on Monday:
Draws for the 2017 Class 3A girls tennis state tournament, held May 11-13 at Centennial Park in Greeley, are below.
All matches start at 9 a.m. each day. The first two rounds at each position will be played Thursday. Friday morning will be all semifinals, and the playback matches will start immediately afterwards. All third- and fourth-place matches and finals will be at 9 a.m. on Saturday morning.
Should weather intervene, check CHSAANow.com for contingency plans.
These results will be updated throughout the tournament.
For more information on the process for creating these brackets, click here or scroll down.
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Class 3A girls tennis state tournament
Click on a tab to see that bracket, or team scores.
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Information on the state tournament and draw creation
Only those teams who qualify four or more positions to state are eligible for the CHSAA state team championship title. The bracket creation process is as follows:
All 16 individuals/teams will be considered for placement on the draw.
The top 4 individuals/teams will be placed.
The committee shall consider the following factors (in no particular order of importance): strength of league, overall record, strength of competition, head-to-head competition and common opponents.
The remaining Regional Winners (#1’s) will be randomly drawn for places on the draw.
The Regional Finishers (#2’s) will then be randomly drawn for matches against a Regional Winner.
All Regional Winners will be paired against a Regional Finishers.
No two teams or individuals from the same Region will play each other during the first round of the state championship.
