Sports Reporter
The Caribou girls tennis team has been a perennial contender for the Eastern Maine championship during the past two decades, and the squad is heading back to yet another regional final this year.
Photo courtesy of Barry Gutradt/stealthvader@hotmail.com
Carlee Pinette of Caribou returns a backhand slam during the Vikings semifinal with Mount Desert Island. The Vikings take their undefeated record into today’s Eastern Maine Class B championship match against Camden Hills.
The Vikings have won seven EM titles in the past 18 years, along with four state titles, and have a chance to accomplish the feat once again under John Habeeb, who has served as the team’s coach the entire time.
Caribou, as the No. 3 seed in Eastern Maine Class B, will meet up against top-ranked Camden Hills today at 4 p.m. at Colby College in Waterville.
The 14-0 Vikings reached the finals by defeated Belfast at home in the quarterfinals last Wednesday, 4-0, and No. 2 Mount Desert Island on the road in the semis Friday, 4-1.
Individual winners in the home match were singles players Laura Collins, who beat Rosie LaCivita in straight sets, 7-5, 7-5; and Carlee Pinette, who downed Sierra Ventura, 6-2, 6-2.
Missy Nadeau and Liz Barbosa combined in No. 1 doubles to defeat Renna Smith and Ashton Fancy easily, 6-1, 6-0. In second doubles, Ashley Richards and Katie Keaton blanked Jane Ouillette and Liz MacAvoy, 6-0, 6-0.
Jenna Selander of Caribou, in first singles, led Shashanna Moll, 6-2, 5-3, before rain prevented the match to be completed.
On Friday, the Vikes made the trip to Bar Harbor and handed the host Trojans the defeat. Selander did not surrender a single game to Grace Robbins in a 6-0, 6-0 rout, while Collins beat Jessica Swanson by the same score as in the quarterfinal, 7-5, 7-5.
Photo courtesy of Barry Gutradt/stealthvader@hotmail.com
Melissa Nadeau of Caribou lunges for the ball during the Vikings semifinal match against Mount Desert Island. Caribou won to advance to Wednesday’s Eastern Class B championship against Camden Hills.
The Caribou doubles teams were both victorious once again, as Nadeau and Barbosa bested Hannah Worcester and Annika Sampson, 7-5, 6-4, and Richards and Keaton beat Mia Musetti and Caroline Brown, 6-3, 6-3.
Caribou’s lone blemish was in third singles, as Pinette lost to MDI’s Julia Christie in a three-set match that included a tie-breaker, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-1.
A win by Caribou this afternoon would send the squad into the Class B state championship in a match to be played Saturday at 4 p.m. again in Waterville.
The Caribou boys saw their season come to an end Thursday in a 5-0 loss to No. 1 Camden Hills at Rockport.
With the loss, the Vikes finished with a 7-6 overall record. In singles, Caribou’s Ezra Duplissie-Cyr was defeated by Will Vlautin, 6-3, 6-2, Nick Willey fell to Pierre Haugen, 6-0, 6-0, and Jon Ouellette lost to Casey Scott, 6-2, 6-3.
In doubles, Camden Hills’ John Vannorsdall and Evan Drinkwater defeated Phil Smith and Matt Coty, 6-3, 6-3, and the Windjammers’ Andrew Beauchesne and Robin Crandall topped Lucien Caverhill and Tyler Willey, 6-4, 7-5.
