'The girls' take their doubles to new level

The day before Buffalo Grove's spring break last year Ashton and Heather Nisbet put their identical look to a test.

To start the seventh period, Ashton went to Heather's class, and Heather to Ashton's.

Right away, Heather's true identity was uncovered, and she was sent to her proper classroom.

Ashton had gotten away with her impersonation until Heather walked through the door and her biology teacher's hunch was confirmed.

"She was like, 'I knew that wasn't Heather,'" Heather said. "But that's as much as we've done. We don't want to get into too much trouble."

The Nisbets are technically identical twins, but look and talk to them for long enough and their differences pop out.

Ashton, who is eight minutes older, has the higher voice. Heather dresses for comfort; Ashton for appearance. Heather has one piercing in each ear; Ashton two.

They even have their own distinct walk.

"They certainly have their separate identities," said Cindy Nisbet, their mother. "We appreciate that. We wouldn't want them always referred to as the twins. Actually growing up, we've never ever said, 'The twins.' It's always been, 'The girls.' We wanted them to be different."

Place them on a tennis court, and it's the same -- they're different.

Ashton has the finesse; Heather the power. Individually as players, both are good. Together, they are moving toward great.

A year after playing together competitively for the first time, the girls have come a long way in doubles. They're now among the best in the area and as sophomores have a realistic shot at reaching state.

In the game of doubles, a year of experience, especially that first year of it, can make a substantial difference.

As freshmen last fall, Ashton and Heather were new to high school, new to varsity tennis and new to doubles. Their entire lives -- they received pee-wee tennis rackets for their first birthday -- had seen them as singles players.

When they arrived at Buffalo Grove, Bison coach Kevin Schrammel decided to put them together at doubles out of necessity for the team.

The Nisbets were able to skip the getting-to-know-your-partner period that comes with new doubles teams. Changing their style of play wasn't so easy. With their singles background, they preferred to stay away from the net and relied on their ground strokes.

In doubles, that just doesn't work.

"These girls, like a lot of high school players, are reluctant to go to the net," Schrammel said. "The biggest obstacle and I think the biggest necessity is learning to go to the net. It was something they struggled with last year, but have grown into it pretty easily this year, which has been a pleasant surprise."

The Nisbets held their own at No. 2 doubles last season. The better teams beat them simply because they were more fundamentally sound.

But with their athleticism -- both are on varsity badminton and Heather plays varsity basketball -- and above-average tennis skill, they were among the best in the Mid-Suburban League. They finished second at No. 2 doubles in conference and lost to St. Viator's state-qualifying team at sectionals.

Although the Nisbets aren't year-round players and didn't make tennis their priority for the summer, they had taken a noticeable step in their doubles game when they returned to the court in August.

The one thing Schrammel especially was pleased with was he didn't have to tell them constantly to go to the net. They were doing it instinctively.

"This year when they came out I wasn't sure really what to expect," he said. "They got a lot stronger, and they got a lot smarter. I was really impressed. The big difference was they came out being a little more aggressive this year. They came out with a little bit more of a chip on their shoulder instead of freshmen who didn't know what to expect and were unsure of themselves."

In opening weeks of this season, they've proven themselves. They beat talented doubles teams from Benet and Stevenson and were 8-0 as of Wednesday.

St. Viator coach Dan Tripamer's doubles team was among those the Nisbets defeated.

"The Buffalo Grove twins are phenomenal," he said. "I was wondering why I can't be blessed with twins who can play tennis. They're good. They're really good."

The Nisbets do enjoy winning. They are competitive, Heather a little more than Ashton, but ultimately, they want to have fun. They've never had the "sibling rivalry" and even feel bad when their emotions get out of hand on the tennis court.

"Because I play with my sister, sometimes I can tend to get a little bit more angry with her, which I don't like," Ashton said. "I don't like to get angry with her. I just love having her there."

Although they are different in many ways, they do share that.

"We just love playing together," Heather said.