Niwot girls tennis claims regional crown

The Niwot girls tennis team is heading back to the Class 4A state championships after a dominating performance at the Region 5 tournament, held on the home courts, June 1-2. Led by sophomore Alys Pop at No. 1 Singles, Niwot finished first or second in six of seven lines to capture the Region 5 title as well as six spots at the upcoming state tournament in Pueblo's City Park, June 11-12. For head coach Aimee Keronen, seeing her once "unsure" team develop into a regional champion and a top contender for the state title was a satisfying way to end a regular season full of challenges.

"At the beginning of the season, we had so many new, young players, but as the season progressed, I felt like we're going to get to the point where we would be successful here," she said. "It showed these kids work hard. We had a lot of rain outs, but then they would come in on Saturdays and come in late at night, and it has paid off."

For Pop, it paid off in an undefeated season, and then a straight sets win (6-2, 6-1) over Longmont's Lauren Pavot for her first-ever regional singles title. Afterwards, Pop said a positive mentality helped her prepare for the championship match, but an effective forehand and net game also came in handy.

"I went in there not necessary to win, I went in to play my best," she said. "I was like, 'Just play your game, play one point at a time, just be the player you practiced to be'."

Pop is "excited" about her first appearance in the Class 4A state championships, and believes the Cougars' "great team dynamic" is their secret weapon in the battle for the state title.

"They have such great mentalities and are always so supportive of each other," she said. "On the court, they always cheer each other on like, 'great shot', or, 'you can do this right here'. So just the fact that they're always willing to communicate, and always willing to cheer each other on is a huge factor in our success."

Also victorious for Niwot was third-year varsity veteran Anna Sallee, who earned her first regional title at No. 2 singles by beating Gabrielle Gutierrez of Silver Creek (6-0, 6-0). The hard-serving junior will be making a return trip to Pueblo, but her first as a singles player, after transitioning to the new spot this year. Like Pop, Sallee was undefeated in the regular season, and believes the team's close bond will take them far at state.

"We had a lot of new people coming into varsity this year, so it was a little challenging at the beginning, getting everybody to kind of come together and form a team," she said. "But we did really well; our team is really close. We're all going to try our best, and we're all hard workers, and we have heart."

Elsewhere, senior Emily Creek will also be making her state singles debut, after beating Keely Weber of Silver Creek 6-1, 6-2 to claim the No. 3 singles title. The fourth-year veteran went 5-1 after assuming the new position on May 20, and Keronen likes her chances to finish in a scoring position at state.

In doubles action, partners Caitlyn Fong and Georgia Lang took the regional crown at No. 1 with a 6-3, 6-1 win over the team from Silver Creek. In the most contested win of the day for Niwot, the No. 2 doubles pair of senior Teyha Laughlin and freshman Tracy Yu fended off another pair from Silver Creek, 6-2, 6-4.

Niwot's losses on the final day came at No. 4 doubles, where Harper Behmer and Claire Butcher fell to Longmont in the championship finals, 6-4, 6-0, but secured a spot at state with the runner-up finish. At No. 3 singles, however, freshman Riley Markham and Sarada Gundavarapu fell to Silver Creek in the semifinals, and will not advance to the championships.

Keronen said she "feels good" about the Cougars' chances at state, especially after the whirlwind end to the 2021 regular season, which saw Niwot play matches on four consecutive days, with top-ranked Valor Christian and Kent Denver among their opponents.

"At the end, match after match after match leading up to regionals actually ended up benefiting us," Keronen said. "It was tough, but it was good in terms of experience. We put ourselves in a good position today with a bunch of one seeds going into state. "