FRESHMAN Paige Martino defeated her first singles counterpart in straight sets, 6-2, 6-0, during the Pioneers’ 5-0 victory over Rockport on May 2. (Courtesy Photo)
By DAN TOMASELLO
LYNNFIELD — The girls’ tennis team concluded last week with two wins and a tie.
The Pioneers (8-1) began last week defeating Rockport 4-1 on May 2.
Freshman Paige Martino defeated her first singles opponent in straight sets, 6-2, 6-0.
Senior captain Anna Radulski won her second singles match in two sets, 6-3, 6-2.
“Paige and Anna led their matches from start to finish,” said Pioneers head coach Craig Stone. “They both have punishing groundstrokes, hit down the line approaches and can finish off the point at the net. Paige lost the first game, and then won 12 out of the next 13 games. Anna led in both sets and the end was never in doubt.”
Junior Geena Gioioso won her third singles match in straight sets, 6-4, 6-1.
“Genna faced a backboard of an opponent,” said Stone. “She was down 2-3 in the first set and with the match tied 4-4, she won the last two games. She won six out of the last seven games in the second set to close it out 6-1. Genna always had a steady game, but she now hits with pace and depth to add to her arsenal.”
Senior captain Lauren Grava and sophomore Maddie Sieve won their first doubles match in three sets. After losing the first set 6-7, Grava and Sieve bounced back to win the second set 7-6 and prevailed 10-4 during the third set tiebreaker.
“Lauren and Maddie are leading the team in tiebreaker sets played this season, and they added three more during this match,” said Stone. “Neither team seemed to gain an advantage in this up and down match. After splitting sets and with the team match already decided, the Pioneer tandem jumped out in the 10-point super tiebreaker to win the final set 10-5.”
Senior Sarah Breslow and sophomore Leticia Marafon lost their second doubles match in three sets. After losing the first set 1-6, Breslow and Marafon bounced back and won the second set 6-3. They dropped the third set 5-10.
“Second doubles had a slow first set start,” said Stone. “Sarah and Leticia led all the way in the second set. However, they went down early in the super tiebreaker and lost the third set.”
Stone said the Pioneers played well against Rockport even though “raw weather conditions punctuated the day.”
“Although our play was a little inconsistent at times, the players have consistently stayed mentally tough, ignoring playing conditions, and the ups and down of match play,” said Stone. “The competition itself is tough enough, and letting other variables come into play makes it difficult to be successful. I am proud of the way we have handled adversity, and equally proud of the cohesiveness of our team on and off the court.”
Defeats Pentucket
The Pioneers kept rolling and defeated Pentucket 5-0 on May 3.
Martino cruised to a two-set victory in first singles, prevailing 6-3, 6-1.
Radulski dismantled her second singles counterpart in straight sets, 6-2, 6-0.
Gioioso won her third singles match in two sets, 6-0, 6-2.
“Paige, Anna and Geena led throughout their matches,” said Stone.
Grava and Sieve won their first doubles match in two sets, 6-1, 6-4.
Breslow and Marafon secured a two-set victory in second doubles, prevailing 7-6, 6-2.
“Both doubles teams seesawed a little bit, but hung tough at crunch time to get straight set wins,” said Stone.
Stone commended the Pioneers’ performance against Pentucket.
“Playing back-to-back matches is always a challenge,” said Stone. “However, I was pleased to see that we were able to maintain our intensity and focus. We continued to play our matches one point at a time, and did not worry about what happened on the last point.”
Clipped by Newburyport
The Pioneers fell 4-1 to undefeated Newburyport on May 5.
Radulski won her first singles match in two sets, 6-2, 7-5.
Martino lost her first singles match in straight sets, 0-6, 1-6.
Gioioso came up short in her third singles match in two sets, 1-6, 1-6.
Grava and Sieve lost their first doubles match in two sets, 3-6, 4-6.
Breslow and Marafon dropped their second doubles match in straight sets, 0-6, 0-6.
Stone recalled that Lynnfield and Newburyport each had 8-0 records going into the match.
“We train, we compete and we get feedback,” said Stone. “We will use that feedback as motivation and incentive to work on our weaknesses and prepare for the rematch later in May. To quote Van Morrison, ‘In order to win, sometimes, you have to lose.’”
Lynnfield hosted Ipswich on Monday, May 9, taking place after deadline. The Pioneers travel to Austin Prep on Wednesday, May 11, beginning at 3:30 p.m.
The Pioneers travel to Triton on Friday, May 13, beginning at 3:30 p.m. Lynnfield travels to archrival Manchester-Essex on Monday, May 16, beginning at 3:30 p.m.
