Wildcats Off to a Good Start With Win Over Amesbury

The boys tennis team could not have asked for a nicer day, or a better outcome, for their first match of the season as they took home a 3-2 victory over Amesbury on Monday afternoon.

"I thought we played gutsy," said Wilmington coach Robert Mailey. "And considering our relative lack of experience I think they hung real tough, and I’m quite proud of them."

The Wildcats dropped the first two singles matches to their respective opponents, as senior captain Adam Kline lost first singles in straight sets after a hard fought battle with Amesbury's Grant Bellino, 5-7, 3-6.

Junior Zach Curley also fell in straight sets despite a close match-up, 7-6, 6-2.

It was sophomore Will MacKinnon who stepped up for the Wildcats during his  first varsity singles match of his high school tennis career. He defeated his opponent, Tim Dwight, after three long and tiring sets: 1-6, 6-4, and 7-5.

"[The outcome being] 7-5 in the third set means that the match could have gone either way, and Will just pretty much just outlasted his opponent and that was really the swing match for us," said Mailey.

"[After losing the first set] I slowed down my serves a little bit, and I focused more on consistency. I just got into a rhythm and just stayed in it until the end," said MacKinnon.

Seniors John Malone and Reg Della Pelle took down their competitors in first doubles (6-3, 6-2), while the team of juniors Jamie Mara and Zach Anderson also made quick work of their opponents, 6-2, 6-1.

"Both first and second doubles played very disciplined and kept their focus for the whole match. We’re going to have to keep doing that," said Mailey.

With Kline being the only returning starter for the Wildcats, he was proud of the performance put forth by some of the newcomers.

"I’m really proud of the kids," said Kline. "They’ve been playing hard in practice, all their positive attitudes have been adding to the team spirit."

Next up, Wilmington will take on Lynnfield on Thursday at Textron courts in Wilmington at 3:30 p.m. as they try to spark a win streak to start off the season.

"I think we can definitely beat them," said Kline. "They lost some seniors this year so they are a little weaker."