Steamboat Pilot & Today

Steamboat Springs — After dropping its season opener to Aspen Friday, Steamboat regained its swing with a 5-2 win over Thompson Valley Saturday.

It did not take long for the Sailors to get on the winning side of things as they swept all three of their singles matches and their first doubles match against the 5A school from Denver.

"They beat us 6-1 last year. They're a 5A team from the Denver area so anytime you do well against them, you know you're doing pretty well," Sailors coach Emily Harris said.

At the No. 2 singles spot, Kim Heckbert clinched the win in the second set when she pulled ahead of a four-game tie.

"I kind of got a little unfocused and lost three games in a row. But I got my focus back to win it," Heckbert said. "Overall I played a lot better than yesterday, my serves were on and my forehands were on. I just tended to rush it at times."

After battling back and forth with the Eagles' Maranda Burdick, Heckbert sealed her fifth win when Burdick could not return on a volley. Heckbert captured the match win in the next game as she served her way to a 40-15 lead, then ended the game when she hustled to return a deep ball to Burdick, whose hit went out of bounds.

Heckbert won the match with sets of 6-2 and 6-4.

"My ball placement was a lot better (than on Friday) and I made her run around a lot," Heckbert said. "I just had to focus and go back to the basics and not try anything fancy. I had to get the ball in the court and let her make the mistakes."

The No. 1 doubles team of Tiffany McGinn and Ali Fisher also came out ahead of a close game. The duo gained the upper hand in the first set with a 7-5 win and finished the match with a 6-3 win in the second set.

After serving trouble in the middle of the second set allowed the Eagles to close the gap 4-3, the Sailors won the next game. McGinn capped off the win when she served for the clutch game that quickly ended without the Eagles scoring any points.

"We started out strong," Fisher said. "Once we lost our concentration but then got back into it."

No. 1 singles player Allison Griffing quickly put her opponent Sayli Changstrom away with two sets of 6-1, 6-1. Griffing rebounded from a loss the day before to one of the top players in the state, Aspen's Laura Gordon.

"(Griffing) played so well. She overpowered the other girl. She didn't have any problems at all," Harris said.

Freshman Kelli Parnell continued on her winning streak by beating Betsy Peterson in sets of 6-1, 6-0. The Sailors' fifth win came from the No. 3 doubles team of Amanda Toy and Becca Herman, who defeated Amber Hicks and Kelly Hunley in sets of 6-0, 4-6 and 6-4.

Aspen, who remains undefeated and whose record includes wins over Steamboat and regional powerhouse Montrose, beat Thompson Valley earlier in the day.

The Sailors' next competition comes Friday when they travel to Montrose for a four-match weekend.