THE GIRLS’ TENNIS TEAM proudly displays the Division 4 Final Four trophy after defeating Bromfield 3-2 in the Elite Eight on June 5. Kneeling, from left, Bella Nguyen, Gianna Micieli, Jerusha Robins, Charlotte Beccia and Mariana Angulo. Standing, from left, head coach Craig Stone, Sonia Kumar, Parminder Saini, Ella Hayman, Lily Alves, senior captain Leticia Marafon, senior captain Maddie Sieve, captain Paige Martino, Emma Wagon, Charlotte Rose, Nandana Nishanth, Zoe Rockwell, Vicky McCrann and Victoria Clancy. (Jamie Hayman Photo)

 

After press time:
Lynnfield defeats Manchester Essex 3-2 in the Final Four (June 12)
Falls to Hamilton-Wenham in the D4 State Finals (June 15)

 

Published June 12, 2024

By DAN TOMASELLO

LYNNFIELD — The third seeded girls’ tennis team is headed back to the Division 4 Final Four.

Lynnfield (15-6) punched its ticket to a second straight Division 4 Final Four after defeating the sixth seeded Bromfield School 3-2 in the Elite Eight on June 5.

“It feels great to be back,” said senior captain Maddie Sieve, who clinched the Final Fourth appearance after winning her third singles match. “It’s just as exciting as it was last year. It’s well deserved.”

Senior captain Leticia Marafon, who plays first doubles, agreed.

“This is an incredible moment for us,” said Marafon. “We were able to win the Elite Eight last year and it’s great we were able to win it again this year.”

Captain Paige Martino, who plays first singles, echoed her teammates’ sentiment.

“I am so proud of our team,” said Martino.

The Pioneers’ match against the Trojans was tied 2-2 and came down to Sieve’s three-set third singles win that lasted three-and-a-half hours.

“It was an epic dual,” said Pioneers head coach Craig Stone.

After losing the first set 3-6, Sieve bounced back and won the second set 6-3. With 80 attendees closely watching the third set, Sieve rallied to win it 7-6.

“Maddie lost the first set 3-6, and she then came back and reversed the score for a 6-3 second set win,” said Stone. “With all eyes on the pair, they continued to battle with the team score tied 2-2.  The third set had its momentum swings, with Maddie up 4-3 and then her opponent up 5-6.  Maddie battled back to tie the set 6-6, which set the stage for the seven-point tiebreaker. In the tiebreaker, Maddie jumped out 3-1 before Bromfield tied it 3-3. Maddie went up 6-3, and Bromfield closed it to 6-5. In another long rally, Maddie held on for the 7-5 win, which reinforced the nickname ‘Marathon Maddie’ that she has earned over the past three seasons for her very long matches.”

After Sieve won the match, her teammates raced onto the court to hug and congratulate her. She said her third singles match against Bromfield was the longest in her varsity tennis career.

“It only makes sense that it was my longest match considering it could have been my last one,” said Sieve. “I played hard right until the end because I didn’t want it to be my last match. It feels incredible. I definitely got down on myself, but my teammates kept cheering me on. It really lifted my spirits and got me to where I needed to be.”

Stone said the Pioneers “have been close in a lot of 3-2 losses this year.”

“We just haven’t been able to finish at crunch time,” said Stone. “I knew we had to play well at crunch time to get back to the Final Four. Maddie played fantastic. We have an acronym called WIN, which stands for ‘what’s important next.’ She knew that the next point was what was important. She did not think about what happened or what could have happened. Having her win the match with 80 people watching was awesome. I am so happy for her.”

The Pioneers jumped out to an early 1-0 lead after Martino defeated her first singles opponent in two sets, 6-2, 6-3.

“Paige is a mechanic out there,” said Stone. “She just goes out there and takes care of business. You get the same performance from her day in and day out. She has the all-court game: The serve, the groundstrokes and the volley. She plays within herself and if she is not particularly on in one facet of her game, she will adapt.”

The Pioneers took a 2-0 lead after sophomore Lily Alves won her second singles match in two sets, 6-1, 6-3.

“Lily’s match was highlighted with many long rallies, with each player trying to out steady the other,” said Stone. “Lily, however, was also able to move her opponent around with direction, pace and spin. She led the entire way. Lily never played tennis competitively until last year. She played recreationally. I teach tennis over the summer, and she came to one lesson a week for six weeks. I asked her to try out for the team. She started at second doubles and was playing first doubles by the end of last year. She worked on her game in the summer and in the winter as soon as field hockey ended, and she is now playing second singles. There is no ceiling to what she can do.”

Bromfield won both doubles matches.

Sophomore Vicky McCrann and freshman Emma Wagon lost their second doubles match in two sets, 5-7, 2-6.

“Vicky and Emma were up 5-1 in the first set, and seemed to be on their way for a first set win, but Bromfield shifted gears and limited their errors and the Pioneer pair could not keep it going,” said Stone. “Vicky and Emma are a young team that has a lot of potential. If they had won the first set, I think the second set would have had a different outcome.”

Marafon and junior Ella Hayman lost their first doubles match in three sets. After losing the first set 2-6, Marafon and Hayman bounced back and won the second set 7-5. They lost the third set 4-6.

“After dropping the first set and being down 4-5 in the second, Leticia and Ella rallied to win the second set 7-5,” said Stone.  “The match was tied 3-3 in the third set and Lynnfield had their chances, but Bromfield saved a few game points to go up 5-3. Leticia and Ella cut the lead to 4-5, but they could not earn the third set win. Leticia and Ella work well together as a team. They understand the game, know how to change strategies and know how to change formations on the court.”

Stone commended the Pioneers’ performance against Bromfield. With the Lynnfield High School tennis complex now featuring five courts, both varsity tennis teams played back-to-back Elite Eight matches.

“It was a great team match,” said Stone. “The level of play on the court, and the energy and enthusiasm from the crowd supporting both the boys’ and girls’ teams and the teammates off the court made for an awesome atmosphere.  With the match tied 2-2, you could feel the drama and anxiety build, and fortunately we came out on top. We are very fortunate to have a new tennis facility that allowed us to host this doubleheader. I would like to thank everyone that was involved in the fundraising to build this complex. You helped create a complex that will benefit many student-athletes in the future, and today, you helped create a memory that will last forever.”

Marafon echoed Stone’s viewpoint.

“All of the support we received from teammates, parents and coach Stone was awesome,” said Marafon. “We would not be here without coach Stone.”

Martino concurred with Marafon’s point of view.

“The atmosphere here with the boys’ team made it incredible,” said Martino.

The third seeded Pioneers will face second seed and archrival Manchester-Essex (18-3) in the Division 4 state semifinals on Wednesday, June 12, beginning at 4 p.m. at St. John’s Prep.

Dominates Leicester 

The Pioneers defeated 19th seed Leicester in the Sweet 16 on June 4.

Martino won her first singles match in straight sets, 6-0, 6-0.

Alves secured a two-set victory during second singles, prevailing 6-2, 6-1.

Sieve earned a decisive victory during third singles, 6-0, 6-0.

Marafon and Hayman won their first doubles match in consecutive sets, 6-1, 6-1.

McCrann and Wagon prevailed 6-2, 6-0 during second doubles.

“LHS was the site of a tennis doubleheader, as both the boys’ and girls’ teams hosted Leicester in the Round of 16,” said Stone. “The girls’ filed onto the courts as the boys’ matches ended, and proceeded to dominate from start to finish.”