Niwot sends five lines to state girls tennis tournament

The Class 4A Region 5 tournament, held at Niwot April 30, saw the Cougars send five lines to the state tennis tournament at Pueblo City Park, with play beginning Thursday, May 9. Erie High School had the best result, sending six lines to the tournament.

At No. 1 singles, Niwot's Saha Kolli finished second to Erie's Nanoha Nakamura. Niwot's Tracy Yu won the No. 2 singles final over Stella Rulon of Longmont, 6-4, 6-3. Yu is doing double duty this spring as a member of Niwot's girls soccer team as well, which also qualified for state.

In No. 1 doubles play, Niwot's Anne Haley and Samantha Zacky lost in the finals, 6-4, 4-6, 6-1, to Erie's Francie Mueller and Kendall Wachowiak, whom the Niwot duo had beaten a week earlier in the team tournament.

The Cougars managed to send both the No. 3 doubles tandem of Caitlyn Carmichael and Magnolia Valentine, and the No. 4 doubles duo of Hannah Nelson and Jordan Rutkowski to the state tournament. Both finished second to their Erie counterparts.

In team competition, Niwot was seeded 11th in Class 4A, resulting in a matchup with No. 6 Erie High School April 24. The Cougars won two of the seven matches at Erie High School, as Erie advanced with a 5-2 victory before falling to Mullen in the semi-finals.