LEWISTON — For the Waynflete boys tennis team, the Class C state final Wednesday at Bates College was an opportunity to reestablish itself as the best small-school team in Maine.

For the Maranacook girls, it was a chance to solidify its status as the state’s top small-school girls program.

Both succeeded, as Waynflete returned to its state-championship winning ways with a 3-2 victory over MCI, and Maranacook successfully defended its crown with a 4-1 win over Orono.

Waynflete had won 16 straight Class C boys titles before last year’s loss to Orono. This year, the Flyers won No. 3 singles and both doubles matches to reclaim the championship.

“We didn’t put a lot of emphasis on the streak,” said senior captain Jules Kirby. “Our coach didn’t really want to put the pressure on us. Honestly, the streak, it’s nice to talk about it, but really we just want to play good matches, win good games, have good sportsmanship. It’s less about the number and the streak. Yes, it’s cool to have that and I’d love to bring that to my school, but we didn’t really put too much emphasis on it during the season.”

Kirby and his doubles partner, Silas Wellenius, clinched Waynflete’s 21st state championship by defeating Martin Herrando and Jacobo Leo in first doubles, 6-3, 6-3.

“We put in tens of thousands of reps all winter long, thousands more during the season,” Wellenius said. “I mean, we were devastated to finish second last year, and we just got right back to work, and now we can feel the payoffs. But, really, it’s the full year of hard (work). It’s not just today.”

Waynflete’s (14-2) other winners were its No. 2 doubles duo, Otis Wellenius and Griffen Hissong, which beat Tyson Thompson and Jason Zhang, 6-1, 6-0; and No. 3 singles player Noah Stern-Rich, who prevailed 6-0, 6-0 over Lucas Phillips. 

MCI (15-1) won the other two singles matches. Francesco Tumsich defeated Jonah Rawlins 6-1, 6-0 in No. 1 singles, and Harry Holmstrom beat Leo Woolf, 6-1, 6-4. 

“A lot of our players are very close in skill level, and so we’re a little weaker on the top end and we’re stronger on the bottom end, so we thought if we could win from the bottom up, as they call it, win the doubles and the third singles, that would be a good formula,” Waynflete coach Peter Hart said. “And that’s exactly how it worked.”

BACK-TO-BACK BEARS

Maranacook (16-0), meanwhile, won consecutive state titles for the first time in program history.

“Our coach (Lou Gingras) told us, ‘Just take it like any other match, stay really focused, calm yourself down, one point at a time,’” junior Katie Payne said. “That really helped us.”

The Black Bears clinched the title early by winning the first three matches. Maranacook has four state titles — three in the last four seasons.

“I’m so beyond proud of this team, and hopefully we can do it again next year,” junior captain Eva Morrill said. 

Morrill and Payne defeated Carmen Miller and Natalie LaMotte, 6-4, 6-1, in first doubles.

The Black Bears’ No. 1 singles player, Lydia Garofalo, beat Calie Soderberg, 6-0, 7-5. Julia Thaller defeated Carly McCrum, 6-0, 6-3, at second singles; and Leah Hildebrandt took down Natalie Vespoli, 6-0, 6-2, in the third singles match.

The lone point for Orono (13-3) came from the No. 2 doubles team of Isabelle Ireland and Brylee McCollette, who defeated Olivia Welch and Katelyn Hall, 6-3, 7-6 (1).

Garofalo, a sophomore who credited her serve for her victory, now has two state titles — a “two-peat,” she said — in her first two years playing for the Black Bears. 

“I’m pretty hyped about it,” Garofalo said.