With four matches in as many days and temperatures in the mid-80s, it would have been understandable if the Lynnfield girls tennis team had an off day against North Reading Thursday afternoon. Instead, the Pioneers (12-6) put the pedal to the metal and polished off the regular season with a 5-0 shoutout on Senior Day.
Head coach Craig Stone said the team “played its best tennis of the week.
“It’s always nice to win the last match of the regular season, but it’s especially nice on Senior Day. … There was a great crowd and the players responded showing no ill effects from having to play four matches in a row, the last three under considerably warm conditions.”
In the first singles match, Paige Martino controlled the first set, 6-2, but had to work a little harder in the second when her opponent forced a tie breaker at six all in the second. Martino buckled down and made short work of it, 7-0.
Lily Alves won the second singles match 6-0, 6-3. Tied at 3-3 in the second set, she rattled off the final three sets to seal the match.
Stone said senior captain Maddie Sieve’s third singles match was a “mirror” of their first meeting earlier in the season. Sieve won the first set, 6-0, but dropped the second, 1-6, to force a 10-point tiebreaker. Tied 6-6, Sieve took four of the next five points to close out the match, 10-7.
Senior captain Leticia Marafon and Ella Hayman took the first doubles match, 6-3, 6-1, while Vicky McCrann and Emma Wagon won at second doubles, 6-2, 6-3.
“Both doubles teams led from start to finish with convincing wins, controlling play from the baseline and net,” Stone said.
Lynnfield 4
Rockport 1
With Sieve and Marafon getting some much-needed rest Wednesday, Stone tweaked the lineup and the Pioneers didn’t skip a beat despite 90 degree heat.
“We were able to move some players around to face a different set of challenges and get more players involved and still come up with the win,” he said. “We have a talented team with plenty of depth. Getting more players involved is a way to recognize their commitment to tennis and the team.”
Martino took the first singles match 6-0, 6-0. In the second singles match, Alves took it after her opponent, trailing 0-3 in the first set, had to retire due to the heat.
Hayman moved up to third singles. In her first career singles match, Hayman lost a back-and-forth, two-hour battle, 6-3, 5-7, 3-10.
“Long rallies, under tough conditions, both players fought relentlessly in this evenly-matched struggle,” Stone said. “In the tiebreaker, Rockport jumped out of the gate quickly, 5-0. Ella mounted a challenge, but it was not enough.”
Marblehead 3
Lynnfield 2
“We went from 60 degrees on Monday to 80 degrees on Tuesday,” Stone said. “Not only did the temperature heat up, but so did the competition. Marblehead is a perennial Division 2 tournament qualifier and it put out another quality team from top to bottom. It was so close, literally, one point away from a possible team win.”
Martino staked the Pioneers to a 1-0 lead with a 6-2, 6-2 win at first singles. Marafon/Hayman dropped the first doubles match 1-6, 1-6 to knot the overall at 1-1. Marblehead sealed the match with a 3-6, 6-1, 7-6 (9-11) win over McCrann/Wagon at second doubles, who rallied from an 0-3 deficit to take a 6-5 lead, but couldn’t hold it. McCrann/Wagon had three match points in the tiebreaker but couldn’t convert.
“They had their chances,” Stone said.
In the second singles match, Alves trailed 0-1, but rallied to take the second singles match, 4-6, 6-2,10-5. Sieve fell at third singles, 1-6, 5-7.
“Paige, again, controlled the points from the baseline, creating the short ball, then putting it away,” Stone said. “Lily played an even first set, only to have her opponent gain the advantage, but showed a little more patience winning the second set. Maddie dropped the first set to a player who took on the persona of a backboard, returning everything.”
Stone has learned from 43 years of coaching that playing competitive teams during the season is a must in order to make deep tourney runs.
“That is why all of our five non-league matches are against teams that have previously qualified for tournament play,” he said. “Hopefully, this will prepare us for those tough tournament matches ahead.”
Lynnfield 5
Triton 0
The Pioneers hit the road Monday and had no trouble securing their 10th win, this one in straight sets. Martino and Sieve won at first and third singles at love, 6-0, 6-0. Alves took the second singles match, 6-1-6-1. Marafon/Hayman prevailed at first doubles, 6-1, 6-4 but they had to work for it, coming back from a 3-4 deficit in the second set to win.
McCrann/Wagon followed suit at second doubles 6-2, 6-2.
The win marked the 39th time in the last 40 seasons that the Pioneers had 10 or more victories.
“We were 9-4 on the season following COVID (2021) when we were only allowed to compete in Cape Ann League matches with no non-league matches, did we fall short of the 10-win mark,” Stone said. “We have been fortunate to have a lot of quality players through the years. Not only have they played well on the court, but they have made playing for Lynnfield tennis a time-honored tradition.”
