LYNNFIELD — The Lynnfield girls tennis team’s first step toward securing a sixth state title in program history was a quick one. The No. 3 Pioneers needed slightly less than an hour to send No. 30 Winthrop packing with a 5-0 sweep at Lynnfield High on Saturday.
“With all the activities going on last week, we never had a practice with all players present because we were juggling prom, graduation, and rain delays,” head coach Craig Stone said. “Fortunately, we were seeded high enough to have an advantage in our first-round match and neither singles or doubles were in any trouble. Going forward, we should be able to build on this and be playing our best tennis at the right time.”
Lily Alves (15-2) needed only 25 minutes to win 6-0, 6-0 at second singles and secure the Pioneers’ first point.
“Lily continued with her balanced style,” Stone said.
Alves said her strategy was to go down the line, as opposed to keeping the ball in the middle.
“She was staying in the middle and giving up short balls because she didn’t really move from the middle of the baseline.” Alves said. “I was trying to get her to move.”
Both doubles teams won easily with Vicky McCrann and Emma Wagon next on the board with a 6-0, 6-2 win at second doubles and Leticia Marafon and Ella Hayman taking the first doubles match, 6-2, 6-0. Almost simultaneously, Maddie Sieve (10-7) closed out the third singles match, 6-1, 6-0.
“Maddie led, 2-1, in the first, then ran off a streak, keeping her opponent off balance and mixing up her ground strokes with depth and direction,” Stone said. “Both doubles had similar results and reciprocal scores, while taking charge at the net and lobbing effectively when needed.”
The only match left on the court was the first singles match. Newly-crowned Cape Ann League Kinney Division Player of the Year Paige Martino (17-1) got off to a bit of a slow start. She led 3-2 in the first set, then rattled off the next nine games in a row to close out the match, 6-2, 6-0.
“It was a contrast in styles as Paige dictated pace and court position, while her opponent just tried to find some form of attack,” Stone said.
Martino said her strategy was to force her opponent to her backhand with lobs.
“She struggled to hit high shots, so that was working for me and, generally, just being consistent with my serves was really helpful for me,” she said. “I think, at times, when I was missing long, my technique was just a little off and, also, the heat sometimes gets to me and takes a little out of you.”
When playing against a weaker team, it’s important to never underestimate an opponent, according to Martino.
“You have to think that you are playing against a good opponent and not let up,” she said. “If you underestimate your opponent, it can get into your head pretty quickly.”
This is Alves’ first year starting in a singles position, moving up from first doubles last year. Based on her record, it’s clear that Alves has had no trouble adjusting to the position change.
“Never, in all my years of coaching, have I ever seen any player make such improvement in such a short period of time,” Stone said. “To think that she is playing second singles after not taking up the game until her freshman year is unthinkable.”
Alves feels the year is going extremely well, and that the Pioneers have as good a chance as anyone to bring home a state title.
“We’re working so well together to cheer people on and keep things going, which led to us having a great season,” said Alves, who didn’t hesitate when asked if the Pioneers could go all the way.
“Absolutely yes. I know we can win it all,” she said.
Martino couldn’t have agreed more.
“Having our team all together and supporting each other has been huge this season,” she said. “And obviously, having Coach Stone is great. He’s one of the best around, so having his advice is extremely helpful for everyone. And also, I always try to apply what I do at practice when I play matches like today. If we continue to drive, we have a really good chance. It obviously will be tough because the top teams are really good and have always been our rivals, so if we just keep pushing and practicing, we should get better and be better able to win against teams like Hamilton-Wenham and Manchester-Essex.”
The Pioneers are back in action Tuesday in a Round of 16 doubleheader with the Lynnfield boys. Both teams are playing Leicester, the No. 19 seed in the girls’ tournament and No. 17 seed in the boys’ bracket.
The boys match starts at 3 p.m. with the girls following as soon as a court opens up.
