Sports
Girls' Tennis Team Moves on With a Win Over Beverly
Marblehead girls knock off the Panthers for the third time this season, 5-0 at home, in a first round tournament match.
The Marblehead High School girls’ tennis team advanced to the quarterfinals of the MIAA Division II North tennis tournament with a shutout over Beverly Friday afternoon in Marblehead.
Marblehead (16-1) beat the Panthers 5-0 at Marblehead High School Friday, losing only nine points to Beverly (7-8)
Marblehead sits as the second seed in the tournament, behind undefeated Winchester (19-0). Beverly came into the playoffs as the 15th seed, dropping two matches to the Headers during the regular season.
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“It was a good win today,” Marblehead coach Tim Stonecipher said. “We got out of the gate fast when Ashley (Noyes) won 6-0, 6-0. Noyes improved to 12-0 on the season when she cruised past Beverly’s Sophie Blau, the senior co-captain, 6-0, 6-0.
“Ashley’s a very good tennis player, Sophie was in a tough spot,” Beverly coach Deborah Olszewski said. “She’s (Ashley) plays very tough, she plays hard and she made it difficult on Sophie right away.” Blau finishes up the season with a 12-3 mark.
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Mary Lyndsay Ryan (12-3) upended Beverly’s Hannah Albee (10-5) at second singles, winning 6-2, 6-0, and Marblehead was looking good heading into third singles and the doubles matches.
Lindsey Cohen and Megan Stanojev iced the match for Marblehead, winning at first doubles. The Header pair beat Beverly’s Becky Nichols and Meggie Manzo, 6-1, 6-3. Cohen improved to 14-0 on the season while Stanojev reached 12-1 with the victory on Friday.
Annie Ryan (3-0 in singles, 11-0 in doubles) dumped Beverly co-captain Hanna Robinson, a junior, 6-0, 6-1 for the fourth Marblehead point of the afternoon.
Sophia Abadia and Jillian Moancau fell to Marblehead’s Meghan Gabel and Sarah Katz, 6-1, 6-1 in the final match of the day. Katz improved to 7-1 with the win, Gabel moved to 11-0 on the season with the win at second doubles.
“They're a very strong team, for sure," Olszewski said. “They’re attacking right at first serve, and throughout the matches.”
Marblehead’s only loss of the season came in May against Andover, 3-2. Andover plays in division one, and they have reached the semifinals after beating Chelmsford and O’Bryant.
Marblehead hosts Pentucket Monday afternoon in Marblehead at 3:30 p.m., in a Div. 2 North Quarterfinal match-up. Pentucket finished the regular season with a 10-6 record and knocked off Medford 4-1 to earn their trip to Marblehead. The Sachems play in the Cape Ann League.
“We’re ready for whomever we play,” Stonecipher said. “We’re working very hard and we’re confident too.”
With a win over Pentucket, Marblehead could see the Big Blue in the semifinals, if Swampscott can win Monday afternoon in Burlington. The semifinals are set for June 8, with the finals TBA.
