Hampden Academy’s Bryce Nichols returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Lewiston High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Lewiston High School’s Molly Chicoine returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Lewiston High School’s Asier Garcinuno returns ball during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue in Lewiston on Saturday.

LEWISTON — By the time Lewiston High School’s first doubles team of Molly Chicoine and Roslynn Wailus knew they were going to a third set against Mt. Blue’s top pairing of Maeve Hickey and Brianna Jackson, the tandem also knew the team had already wrapped up a win in the Class A North semifinal match.

But Chicoine and Wailus wanted more.

“We knew we wanted to get revenge,” Wailus said. “We lost to them at the beginning of the season, and I know we have gotten a lot better. I think, the want to win was in our heads.”

After winning the first set 6-3, Chicoine and Wailus fell in a tiebreak in the second set as Jackson and Hickey found their footing.

The Cougars took the momentum into the third set, as well, winning two of the first three games. But Lewiston regained the momentum and came back to win 6-4 to complete the victory, and the 5-0 team victory, handing Jackson and Hickey their first loss of the season.

“They have played together now 12 times and that’s their first loss,” Mt. Blue coach Judy Upham said. “They knew after that second set, they could come back and win.”

Lewiston coach Anita Murphy knew her doubles tandem had a shot Saturday.

“I talked to them and said, ‘I know they are undefeated and your goal should be to try to beat them this time,'” Murphy said. “You felt like you should have won. They should have won the first time around, they were up four-love in the second set, but (Hickey and Jackson) came back and won it. That was a good lesson for them, but they are good, not to take anything from Mt. Blue, they are a great team. That’s why they were undefeated.”

Lewiston’s second doubles of Maddy Foster and Zahara Shidad had a much easier time, winning in straight sets, 6-0, 6-1, against Mariel Damon and Hallie Pike.

In the singles portion of the team match Maddie Leblond — Lewiston’s No. 1 — player made quick work of of Addie Schanz, 6-1, 6-0.

With the matches starting a little after 10 a.m., Leblond wanted to make Schanz work for every point.

“Just making her run a lot, hitting it cross court,” Leblond said. “Just making her move.”

The second and third singles had a little more difficulty. Lizzy Michaud won the No. 2 match, 6-3, 6-4 over Hannah LeClair. She had to make a comeback in that second set.

“It was four-one,” Michaud said. “I knew I had to win because it’s my senior year and I wanted to go to regionals. “I was like, ‘One point at a time, one game at at time.’ I just stuck it through.”

Chloe Morin won the third singles match, 6-3, 6-0 over Grace McIntosh, who was battling an illness.

Upham was pleased how well LeClair and McIntosh performed.

“I read them the scores of the first time we played, all three of my singles were either 6-3 or 6-4,” Upham said. “They lost, but if you are in the match 6-3, 6-4 you can win it. Hannah came through, she was 6-3, 6-4. My third singles player, she was sick for a week. She showed, so she can be a part of the team, but she was feeling really lousy.”

Lewiston moves to 13-1 on the season and will face the No. 3 Brunswick in the regional final at 10 a.m. on Tuesday. Mt. Blue finished 9-5 on the season.

Lewiston boys run over Hampden

The No. 2-seeded Lewiston boys’ tennis team will also be traveling north to Waterville on Tuesday after defeating No.3 Hampden Academy, 4-1.

Lewiston (11-2) will now face the top seeded Brunswick Dragons, also at Colby College, and also at 10 a.m.

All four of the Devils’ wins took less than an hour to complete, and all four were straight-set wins.

“Our focus as we move through the season has grown leaps and bounds,” Lewiston coach Tom LeBlond said. “All of our players are very determined and that was the idea coming out of today, lets go get them and certainty win a lot of matches in straight sets. The focus they have, they seemed to be in every point, they don’t get distracted, they support each other and they are playing the best tennis, you do that at this time of year.”

Cole Ouellette took care of business in the first singles match, winning 6-0, 6-2.

“I got back from the singles tournament and I was playing well there, Ouellette said. “So, I was trying to bring what I had there to the team event, and it worked. I was trying to be consistent on my first serve and make the opponent work for every point.”

Hampden’s (9-5) only victory of the afternoon came in the second singles contest, where Max Simonneau defeated Joe Bisson 7-6 (7-3), 6-2.

“We had 5-0 last time, so this time is an improvement,” Hampden Academy coach Phil Ranger said. “The message was, ‘Go out and give it your best, you guys have all improved and let’s see if we can see some of that improvement.’ And we did. I am pleased, we got more games in the matches we lost. Always at the end of the season obviously guys are better.”

In third singles, Caden Smith defeated Bryce Nickels, 6-1, 6-0. In No. 1 doubles action Ben Ferrance and Asier Garcinuno defeated Drew Johnson and William Drake 6-0, 6-2, while in second doubles, Sam Frechette and Ben St. Laurent defeated Zach Frisch and Eric Smith 6-0, 6-1.

“(Ben) served pretty good today and we were solid,” Garcinuno said. “We just didn’t make any mistakes today.”

Lewiston High School’s Roslyn Wailus returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Lewiston High School’s Chloe Morin returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Lewiston High School’s Lizzy Michaud returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Lewiston High School’s Lizzy Michaud returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Lewiston High School’s Maddie LeBlond returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Mt. Blue High School’s Addie Schanz returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Lewiston High School in Lewiston on Saturday.

Lewiston High School’s Ben Ferrence slugs a forehand during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue in Lewiston on Saturday.Mt. Blue High School’s Hannah LeClair returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Lewiston High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Mt. Blue High School’s Brianna Jackson returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Lewiston High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Lewiston High School’s Zahara Shidad returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Lewiston High School’s Maddy Foster returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Mt. Blue High School’s Mariel Damon serves during a Class A North semifinal match against Lewiston High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Mt. Blue High School’s Brianna Jackson, foreground, and Maeve Hickey watch as Jackson’s shot goes into the net during the team’s Class A North semifinal against Lewiston High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Mt. Blue High School’s Hallie Pike returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Lewiston High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Hampden Academy’s Max Simmoneau returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Lewiston High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Lewiston High School’s Caden Smith retuns a ball during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue in Lewiston on Saturday.Lewiston High School’s Sam Frechette tracks a ball during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue in Lewiston on Saturday.Lewiston High School’s Joe Bisson tracks a ball during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue in Lewiston on Saturday.Lewiston High School’s Ben St. Laurent returns a ball during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue in Lewiston on Saturday.Lewiston High School’s Cole Ouellette returns a ball during a Class A North semifinal match against Mt. Blue in Lewiston on Saturday.Hampden Academy’s Will Drake returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Lewiston High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Hampden Academy’s Eric Smith returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Lewiston High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Hampden Academy’s Zach Frisch returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Lewiston High School in Lewiston on Saturday.Hampden Academy’s Zach Flannery returns a shot during a Class A North semifinal match against Lewiston High School in Lewiston on Saturday. Copy the Story Link