The girls tennis team had a rocky start last week, losing 3-2 on the road to archrival Manchester-Essex Monday, but the Pioneers finished in fine fashion with 4-1 road wins over North Andover and North Reading on Thursday and Friday to improve to 7-3.
Against North Reading on Friday, Lynnfield jumped out to a 2-0 lead with wins in the first two singles matches with Paige Martin winning at first singles, 6-4, 6-1, and Lily Alves taking the second singles match, 6-0, 6-3.
Coach Craig Stone said that despite having a lead, the match was still up for grabs with a “battle going on at third singles and first doubles and a long two-setter at second doubles.”
Stone’s doubts were dashed when Vicky McCann and Emma Wagon polished off the second doubles match, 6-1, 6-4 to give the Pioneers the win.
“Second doubles are starting to gel as a team, combining strong net play with a mixture of groundstrokes and lobs,” he said.
The first doubles team of Leticia Marafon and Ella Hayman picked up the fourth point with a 6-0, 4-6, 6-0 win. Maddie Sieve won the first set 6-3, but dropped the next two 2-6, 4-6 in the third singles match.
“It is always a competitive match when we get together with North Reading,” Stone said. “They have three-point potential and the rematch on May 23 will prove just as competitive.”
Thursday’s match against North Andover was much closer than the final score of 4-1 suggested. The match was tied at 1-1 after Martino took the first singles match 6-0, 6-1 and North Andover took the first doubles match against McCrann/Hayman, 6-1, 7-5.
“Paige had little difficulty and controlled all phases of play,” Stone said. First doubles was missing Leticia Marafon, so last year’s second doubles team of McCrann/Hayman were back together again. The duo were a little out of sync in the first set, but got it together in the second set and was up 5-4 hoping to force a third set, but could not hang on.
Alves made it a 2-1 match after winning at second singles, 6-4, 6-3.
“Lily jumped out to a 3-0 lead before her opponent settled down,” Stone said. “While both players battled for every point throughout the match, Lilly, up 4-3 in both sets, played better at crunch time.”
Sieve also jumped out to a 3-0 lead only to lose the first set, 4-6. She rallied to win the last two sets, 6-2, 6-2 to win.
“Her opponent out-steadied her and won the first set, however, Marathon Maddie, a nickname she earned last year because she had so many three-set, two-hour-plus matches, hit with a little more pace and direction and led from beginning to end in the final two sets,” Stone said.
Parminder Saidi moved into the second doubles spot vacated by McCrann to team with Emma Wagon and pulled out a three-setter, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4.
“It was a match of adds and deuces with Lynnfield gaining the edge in the first set and North Andover in the second,” Stone said. “The third set was played evenly by both doubles teams, until Lynnfield finished it off with its fifth match-point chance.
“Looking back, the team match could have gone to North Andover, a Division 1 team that qualifies for the state tournament every year. However, our players played a little tougher at crunch time to give us the win,” Stone added. “We focus on WIN (What’s Important Now) and try not to let what has happened previously, or what could happen next, influence our play. What is important is the next point. It is difficult to do, but necessary to be successful.”
Back to the 3-2 loss to Manchester-Essex. The Pioneers have a long history with the Hornets, the last big match coming in the semifinals of the 2023 Division 4 state tournament, won by the Hornets, 3-2.
The Pioneers jumped out to a 2-1 lead after the singles matches. Martino cruised to a 6-2, 6-1 win at first singles and Alves followed suit at second singles, 6-0, 6-1. Sieve dropped the third singles match, 1-6, 2-6.
“Paige and Lily controlled play with great depth and direction on their groundstrokes,” Stone said. “Maddie, again, played long points with many games going to deuce, but her opponent was just too steady and kept her unforced errors to a minimum.”
With the fate of the match in the hands of the doubles teams, Manchester- Essex put the match in the win column, sweeping both matches.
“Both teams battled, had their chances, but could not convert the add points,” Stone said. “Again, the set scores were no indication of the level of play, and the result could be much different should they meet again in the state tournament. We are playing these talented teams even – we just need to convert the big points. We just need to do more with our volleys, get better depth and direction on our groundstrokes, and keep unforced errors to a minimum with our shot selection. But, on the positive side, we have the talent to do all of that and we will continue to work towards it.”