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Class 4A state tennis tournament

Steamboat Springs — Sara Bearss and Kylee Swiggart have advanced to the final round of the state tennis championships after winning their semifinal match in No. 1 doubles this morning.

Their victory this morning comes on the heels of Thursday's quarterfinal win over the defending state champions. Bearss and Swiggart play the No. 1 team from Greeley West at 9 a.m. Saturday in Pueblo.

"We've improved so much," Bearss said about her doubles team, the same pairing that advanced to last year's semifinal round. "We're better at the net and we have better consistency. We've worked hard and we're ready for this."

On the strength of Bearss and Swiggart's run, Steamboat entered today's action tied for sixth place in the tournament with five points. Cheyenne Mountain leads the standings with 13 points.

Also today, the Sailors' No. 3 doubles team of Christi Valicenti and Kaitie Breisch advanced in the consolation bracket, the only Steamboat tennis players to do so today.

In Thursday's opening-round action, all the Sailors except for the No. 1 doubles team fell in a series of hotly contested two-set matches.

Claire Parsons' early morning win helped Steamboat to a fast start. Meanwhile, her struggles in the second round signified that this year's team is still a little too young.

Parsons roasted St. Mary's senior Hillary Kuklenski in the first round of the No. 3 singles bracket. The Steamboat sophomore controlled the match, driving the ball to all corners en route to a 6-1, 6-2 victory.

"It's different this year because I don't have a doubles partner," said Parsons, who competed at state last year in the No. 4 doubles division. "It's more difficult.

"In that first match I was controlling the game instead of letting the other person control me."

It was Parsons who was scrambling across the court a few hours later, struggling to return Fossil Ridge junior Chelsea Dinkel's well-placed shots. Parsons was close midway throughout the match but eventually lost in two sets, 6-4, 6-1.

"Claire left her heart out on that court," Steamboat coach John Aragon said.

The team's No. 2 doubles squad of Hayley Richman and Mandy Thielemann pulled out a two-set, first-round victory thanks to a gutty, match-ending tiebreaker, winning 6-1, 7-6 (6). Like Parsons, they couldn't carry that success all the way through the quarterfinals.

The pair lost to a Regis team, 6-3, 6-4.

Valicenti and Breisch, the No. 3 doubles team, won a first-round match 6-3, 6-4, but lost in the second round against a pair from Cheyenne Mountain, 6-1, 6-3.

Valerie Lezin lost in the first round of the No. 2 singles bracket, 6-1, 6-0, and the No. 4 doubles team of Ali Diehl and Lauren Siegel lost in the opening match, 7-5, 6-3.

"Valerie wasn't feeling very well, but she still played well," Aragon said. "We played alright in the first round. A lot of our girls fought hard but turned it on too late."

Bearss and Swiggart, meanwhile, blasted through their quarterfinal match, defeating a Mullin pair, 6-3, 6-3. Their true test came in the first round, a grueling match that turned out to be Steamboat's only three-set contest.

The Sailors pair was matched up against the defending No. 1 doubles state champions, Meredith McClellan and Kara Bowman from Fossil Ridge.

They had to rally just to force a first-set tiebreaker, then had to rally again after slipping into a 4-2 hole in that first-to-7, set-deciding game.

"That tiebreaker, that was the key. We snuck it away from them. They had opportunities to close, missed them and we took advantage," Aragon said. "We knew coming in that if our girls wanted a chance at a championship, they'd have to go through (Fossil Ridge). Our girls fought hard in that match. They wanted it."

That comeback was even more important considering Steamboat dropped the second set, 6-4. In the third, however, the pair was at its best. It built a 5-2 lead and Bearss served out the final game for a 6-3 victory.

"Both teams were really aggressive," Swiggart said. "We didn't know what to expect, but once we got on the court we felt good."

The duo returns to action today against Kelly Berlinger and Megan Harrison of Regis in the state semifinals.

The rest of the squad will have a chance today to get back in the action through playbacks. The playback opportunities won't be set until after the semifinal round.