It was a week that the Marblehead High girls tennis team would rather forget. After beginning the season with four straight triumphs, the team lost two in a row to Newburyport (4-1, April 27) and Masconomet (5-0, April 28) to drop to 4-2 overall.
“Newburyport got off to a quick start with a win in first and second singles,” said coach Tracy Ackerman. “It was a great all-around match. Newburyport is obviously a tough opponent. For us, Charly (Cooper) in third singles played a super match to secure our lone win.”
Marblehead first single player Pauline Geissler lost, 6-0, 6-1, and Andrea Potvin experienced similar results in second singles, 6-1, 6-1. But Cooper was able to snag the lone Marblehead point in third singles in a very competitive match, 7-6, 2-6, (12-10 in a tiebreaker).
The first doubles team of Courtney Yoder and Aviva Bornstein put up a good battle before losing to their Newburyport counterparts in straight sets, 4-6, 2-6. In second doubles, Aoife Breshnahan and Lucia Levin lost, 3-6, 0-6.
Boys tennis wins two more
In a non-league match-up on April 25 that would make any coach proud, the Marblehead boys tennis team (5-0 in the Northeastern Conference, 5-2 overall) defeated visiting Hamilton-Wenham, 4-1.
“This was a match where both sides displayed great sportsmanship,” said coach Elisabeth Foukal. “The standout win for us was in second singles, when Jost Eggebrecht outlasted Elois Chadel in a three-set match. Jost served very well while also handling Ellis’ excellent serves with consistency and depth. It was a great win for him over an excellent player.”
Marblehead junior Mika Garber beat senior Will Gern in first singles, 6-1, 6-2.
“Mika played smart tennis to outmaneuver this good lefty player,” Foukal said.
Eggebrecht, his classmate, took down Chanel in the aforementioned second singles match, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.
Sophomore Matthew Sherf completed the singles sweep by beating junior Jada Wang, 6-4, 6-0.
“Matthew overcame a 4-2 deficit in the first set to win the next 10 games in a row,” said Foukal.
Sophomores Etan Farfel and Jayden Janock topped juniors Max Clarke and Henry Stinson in first doubles, 7-5, 7-6 (13-11 in a tiebreaker).
“The second set was a nailbiter that included a marathon tiebreaker, but Etan set up Jayden well at the net in some first-rate doubles play to come out on top,” Foukal said.
Senior co-captain Jimmy King and sophomore Luke Miller lost to Keenan Maguire and Rory Taylor in second doubles, 7-5, 6-4.
“Jimmy and Luke are improving in every match, and this was a really close one,” the Marblehead coach said.
In sub-varsity play, senior co-captain Jack Wykes and sophomore Austin Bacon lost to Ben Gasser and Alex Boardman, 8-1. Sophomore Ben Zaltsman lost to Jadar Wang in a singles match, 6-0.
The JV team, under the direction of Priscilla Danforth, also defeated the Generals at Seaside Park by a close 3-2 score. Both sides agreed to play four doubles matches and one singles match in an eight-game pro set.
Luke Roth and Quinn Sullivan won their doubles set, 8-4. Nico Altonian and Evan Murtagh lost, 8-6. Graydon Waller and T.J. Kelly secured an 8-6 triumph. Connor Dunleavy and Travis Erhardt dominated their doubles opponents, 8-2. Jeffery Kucharsky lost his singles match, 8-6.
The Marblehead boys then prevailed over a well-coached Masco team, 4-1, in a match that did not end until twilight hovered over the Boxford courts on April 28.
Garber beat senior Mark Trull, 6-1, 6-0 in first singles. Eggebrecht topped Kyle Trull, 6-2, 6-1 in second singles. Sherf maintained a similar winning script in third singles against senior Steven Ralph, 6-2, 6-3.
Farfel and Janock continued their undefeated streak against conference foes in first doubles, defeating Jack Eaton and Justin Salinger, 6-3, 6-0.
Sophomores Quinn Fletcher and Austin Bacon teamed up for the first time in a second doubles varsity match, only to lose a close encounter to senior Jason Kaias and freshman Kai Hird, 6-3, 6-1.
“Quinn and Austin are gaining valuable experience by facing some good opponents with a large cheering club,” Foukal said.
In sub-varsity play, Anthony Vizy and Luke Miller lost, 7-6 (7-4). But senior co-captains King and Wykes won their doubles match, 6-2. Sophomores Leo Winocour and Ben Zaltsman did the same, 6-1.
Joe McConnell
