The Bromfield girls tennis team’s quest for a Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association Division 4 state championship ended last Wednesday with a 3-2 loss to Manchester Essex in this year’s semifinals, played June 11 on the courts of Saint John’s High School in Shrewsbury.
Michelle Xu, playing first singles, wins in straight sets 6-3, 6-2 over Aurora Lenehan of Manchester Essex.
Senior Zariya Ali plays second doubles with partner Savannah Senykoff (blow). The pair went on to win their match 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 over Manchester Essex.
(Photos by Lisa Aciukewicz)
It was the team’s first semifinal since 2012, and the match between the No. 2 seed Trojans (12-3) and the No. 6 Manchester Essex Hornets (11-8) could not have been closer, decided by a mere two points in a tiebreaker between third singles players Luise Tatarev of Bromfield and Grace Scarborough of Manchester Essex.
The match got underway at 1 p.m. under mostly sunny skies, with temperatures approaching 80 degrees. Spectators sought shade under team canopies or under trees outside the courts. The five Saint John’s courts are located next to a central walkway and patio, making it easy for coaches and fans to keep an eye on all five matches, a single referee moving between them.
Bromfield’s first singles champion Michelle Xu was the first to score. After losing her first three games, Xu found her groove and quickly dispatched her opponent 6-3, 6-2. At second singles, however, Cassidy Fisher of Bromfield lost her match 6-1, 6-1, leaving the two teams tied at one match apiece.
The first and second doubles contests took longer to resolve, but their outcomes failed to break the tie. First doubles players Nina Iverson and Meghna Nambiar, together for the second time only this postseason, lost their first set 6-3, but battled back to tie their second, 6-6, only to lose the best-of-seven tiebreaker 7-3.
At second doubles, Zariya Ali and Savannah Senykoff kept the team’s hopes alive, losing their first set, but winning their second and third. It was Ali and Senykoff’s first match as teammates, and their victory left the teams tied at two matches apiece.
With the victory of Bromfield’s second doubles team, it was clear the semifinal would be decided by the third singles match between Bromfield freshman Tatarev and Manchester Essex junior Scarborough. Both are baseline players, and though Scarborough appeared to be the more experienced and stronger of the two, Tatarev fought back repeatedly to even the score over the four and three-quarters hours of the 35-game match. Both players were bedeviled by nearly equal numbers of unforced errors, often the deciding factor in their lengthy volleys from the backcourt.
Tatarev tied Scarborough in their first set, but lost the tiebreaker, 6-8. She won her second set 6-3 and then tied Scarborough once again in a back-and-forth third set. In the tiebreaker that followed, Tatarev fell behind 3-6, but once again evened the score to 6-6 before losing the final two points of the match. As Hornets ran onto the court to claim their victory, Tatarev’s teammates surrounded her in a group hug.
The match was Tatarev’s best of the season, against a strong and determined opponent, Coach Chris Holmes wrote to the Press after the match. “She handled the pressure extremely well, taking her opponent to the absolute limit.”
Holding banner, from left: Cassidy Fisher, Nina Iverson, and Zariya Ali. Behind, from left: Meghna Nambiar, Michelle Xu, Khivi Nanra, Caroline Ells, Savannah Senykoff, Camille Bradley, Luise Tatarev, Saara Patel, and Lucy Felz. In back: Coach Chris Holmes. Missing team members: Akylai Muktarova, Anouck Bidault, Fatima Mulyono, and Ilimai Muktarova. (Courtesy photo)
“This year’s team was the best Bromfield girl’s tennis team in decades,” said Holmes. “They played a very tough schedule against larger schools with strong tennis programs. … Making it to the state semifinals is difficult to do for any team. [They were] fully invested throughout the year and were a great team to coach.”
For the first time in many years, Holmes said, next season will be a year of rebuilding following the loss of eight seniors. “Still, we will have a good core back and should remain competitive.”
MIAA Division 4 Girls Tennis semifinal vs. Manchester Essex Regional, June 11
- First singles: Michelle Xu (Bromfield) defeated Aurora Lenehan (Manchester Essex), 6-3, 6-2
- Second singles: Sarah Cort (Manchester Essex) defeated Cassidy Fisher (Bromfield), 6-1, 6-1
- Third singles: Grace Scarborough (Manchester Essex) defeated Luise Tatarev (Bromfield) 7-6 (8-6), 3-6, 7-6 (8-6)
- First doubles: Nina Zalosh and Libby Lawler (Manchester Essex) defeated Nina Iverson and Meghna Nambiar (Bromfield) 6-3, 7-6 (7-3)
- Second doubles: Zariya Ali and Savannah Senykoff (Bromfield) defeated Marie McCardle and Ella Arnstoon (Manchester Essex) 4-6, 6-2, 7-5
