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Classical’s Simon Kazimierczyk will try to continue his strong play in doubles heading into the Division 2 North boys tennis tournament.
By LILY DOOLIN
With the tournament season just days away, the MIAA released on Tuesday the brackets for the boys and girls state tennis tournaments, which will start on Thursday.
Several local boys and girls teams from the three divisions made the cut.
Division 2 No. 10-seed Classical will face No. 7-seed Marblehead, making for some tough early competition for the Rams.
The Magicians had a strong showing during the regular season, going 13-7 and beating Classical in a tough match.
“They’re a very strong team,” said coach Chris Hayward. “We have our work cut out for us.”
The Rams will look to fine-tune their game before the matchup on Thursday, cleaning up the mistakes made on their side of the court.
“If we work on our unforced errors, we can improve our game immensely,” said Hayward.
Division 3 No. 4 St. Mary’s will take on No. 13 Triton, a team the Spartans did not face during the regular season.
“They’re a team we don’t know very well, so we have to prepare for everything,” said coach Brian Carlson.
The Spartans, who finished with a 15-5 record, are looking for their first tournament win as a team.
“We just have to play the game we know how to play,” said Carlson. “We have to keep our relaxed mentality.”
Also in Division 3, No. 10 Swampscott will go against No. 7 Winthrop, who beat the Big Blue twice in close matches during the regular season
“Winthrop is a very good team,” said Swampscott coach Neil Whitehouse, adding, “We’re excited for the opportunity to face a team that beat us.”
While Swampscott is eager for redemption, it is already facing a major setback. Star player Matt Jacobs, who was awarded Northeastern Conference Player of the Year, will most likely be out of the first round with an arm injury.
“Each player is going to have to raise their level of play to make up for him (Jacobs),” said Whitehouse.
“We just have to get our confidence going in…and correct the things that cost us.”
On the girls side, Classical finds itself at the No. 2 seed of Division 1, giving the Rams the first bye they have seen in quite some time. While the break is gladly accepted, the Rams are anxious and excited to play the winner of the Acton-Boxboro/Boston Latin game.
“The girls are extremely excited,” said coach Cathy Ellis. “They’ve worked especially hard, and are up to the task.”
Classical won’t be changing much about its strategies heading into the first game. Instead, it looks to continue its consistency and success throughout the tournament.
“We’ve been having some really good practices,” said Ellis. “The girls know what they need to do.”
Division 1 No. 13-seed English will take on No. 4 Lexington in the first round on Thursday.
The experienced Lexington team ended its season with a 17-3 record, making for some tough competition for the Bulldogs.
“Lexington comes from a tough division,” said coach Lauren Mezzetti. “This game is going to be really tough for us.”
However, Mezzetti is hopeful that her team’s seasoned players will step up to the plate and rise to the occasion.
“These girls have worked hard. They’ve played for four years to get here,” said Mezzetti. “We’re looking forward to it; it’s going to be a fun experience.”
Division 2 top seed Marblehead, which finished the regular season with a 19-1 record, will take on the winner of the North Andover/Beverly game on Saturday.
Division 3 No. 10 Swampscott will go against No. 7 Notre Dame.
