The UW-Eau Claire women’s tennis team won key matchups on its way to finishing third in the WIAC Women’s Tennis Championship, allowing it to maintain its ranking from last year.

“We got off to a rough start on Saturday but improved on Sunday,” said head coach Craig Monson. “We expected to maintain third place. It was a successful season overall.”

The two-day tournament ran from Saturday, Oct. 24 to Sunday, Oct. 25 at the Nielsen Tennis Stadium. On the first day of the event, the Blugolds played two rounds of doubles and one round of singles matches. The tournament wrapped up on Sunday with the final round of doubles and the final two rounds of singles competition.

UW-Whitewater made it to the top of the overall standings with 21 points while UW-La Crosse finished second with 18 points. The Blugolds earned third with a point total of 15.

The Blugold team had hoped to gain on La Crosse but was still pleased with the final results, Monson said.

“I think we did a good job as a team,” he said. “It was a successful season overall.”

During the tournament, freshman >a href=”http://www.uwecblugolds.com/?view=athlete&id=4447&sport=wten&season=94″ target=”_blank”>Taylor Heltne defeated Whitewater’s Kathleen Kappel, the No. 1 seed, to win the No. 6 singles championship with set scores of 6-4, 2-6 and 6-3.

Monson said Heltne’s victory was the surprise of the weekend. Beating out Kappel was tough, but Heltne was capable, he said.

“She’s a good player, a gamer,” he said. “I thought she’d step up.”

Heltne said the win came as a surprise even to her.

“I wasn’t expecting it at all,” she said. “I didn’t think of it as a final. . Playing well against her (Kappel) was the goal.”

Sophomore Megan Born placed second in No. 3 singles, falling 6-0, 6-0 in the title match. Placing third were senior Erin Welch in No. 4 singles with scores of 6-3, 6-4 and freshman Jillian Horner in the No. 5 singles, 6-4, 6-4.

Placing fifth were seniors Gina Dahl and Brenna McCormick in the No. 1 and No. 2 singles competition, respectively. Dahl placed with a 7-5, 6-0 score while McCormick won with a 6-3, 6-1 total.

In the doubles competition, the No. 1 seed duo of Born and Heltne battled for second place, falling to a UW-Whitewater team 8-1. McCormick and Welch placed third in No. 2 doubles, winning against a UW-River Falls pair 8-1. The No. 1 doubles combination of Dahl and fellow senior Courtney Lynne took a second-round blow from UW-Oshkosh, 8-2, that ended their tournament.

In addition, Dahl was named as a member of the All-Sportsmanship Team, an honor she takes seriously, she said.

“It’s a real honor,” Dahl said. “It’s one of the best honors as a player.”

The team prepared for the event by practicing on the YMCA tennis courts to become more familiar with the surface type used in Madison, Monson said. Other than the move, they simply practiced hard as they had all season, he said.

Dahl said the team faced a lot of additional pressure over the weekend as it was for the WIAC Championship, but ultimately the support from the entire team helped make a successful ending for the Blugolds.

“I’m really proud of the way the team pulled through,” Dahl said. “I’m proud of the support from the team.”

Heltne said she was also impressed by the support from teammates, adding there were at least two team members watching each Blugold’s matches.

“The Eau Claire tennis team was well represented and we supported each other,” she said. “I thought it was awesome.”