GILFORD – It was a bad, and bloody, start for Kyle Davies. The Gilford senior sliced his right index finger opening a can of balls before his No. 5 singles match in Friday’s Division III boys’ tennis semifinal between the top-ranked Golden Eagles and No. 4 Kearsarge.
The injured finger, and Kearsarge’s Jake Long, had Davies down, and on the next court, Gilford’s No. 6 player, Alden Blais, was also facing an early hole. The match looked like it was going to be tied after singles, but both Davies and Blais staged late comebacks as the Golden Eagles (16-0) clinched the win in singles and eventually claimed an 8-1 decision to earn a spot in Tuesday’s D-III championship. It’s their ninth trip to the finals in 10 years, and the victory extend their winning streak to 83 in a row.
“Those are very key matches (at Nos. 5 and 6), without those it’s 3-3 and doubles can go either way,” said Gilford Coach Terry Wilson, now in his 16th year. “So I’m really proud of them. Proud of all the guys, but for (Davies and Blais) to be down and come back and clinch the match, that was very important.”
Kearsarge’s Long took a 6-3 lead after winning a long deuce game to break Davies. After coming back from an 0-40 hole to hold, that’s when Davies finally listened to his coach.
“I know Mr. Wilson kept telling me the whole time, ‘hit it to his backhand,’ and I don’t know, I was just more thinking about getting it in,” Davies admitted. “But then I was down 6-3, so I started focusing on hitting it there and really did find that was his weakness, and that helped show me there is a chance I can win this.”
Davies took that chance and ran with it, winning six of the next seven games for a 9-7 victory. He didn’t realize it was the match-clinching win, but he figured it out when his teammates mobbed him coming off the court at Gilford Hills Tennis Club – the match was moved indoors due to rain.
About 30 minutes before Davies won, it didn’t look like anything was going to be decided in singles. The Golden Eagles had a 3-1 lead, but Long was winning at No. 5 and the Cougars had a 5-2 lead on No. 6 with Parker Pitts in control against Gilford’s Blais.
“I was just rushing things. I was trying to hit every shot as a winner,” Blais said. “I just had to slow down and play my game.”
Blais got some advice on how to do just that from Hermann Defregger, the Gilford girls’ tennis coach who was helping Wilson with the boys’ team on Friday. Defregger told Blais to keep his feet moving and focus on one point at a time. The fundamental advice worked as Blais came storming back to win six of the last seven games for an 8-6 final.
Gilford’s first singles win came at No. 1 where Grant Workman used a big first serve and a heavy lefty forehand to run away with an 8-0 win over Tyler Valovic.
“It was a little bit different playing indoors, but this is a big advantage for me because I play here year round,” Workman said.
Valovic is a good player, but all he could do was smile as Workman banged home first serve after first serve.
“My serve was on, and if it’s on like that, I feel ready to attack the ball, and everything else is easier,” Workman said.
Kearsarge’s lone singles win came at No. 2, where Tucker Valovic (Tyler’s younger brother) beat Christian Workman (Grant’s cousin), 8-1. Match point told the story as Workman hit a series of solid ground strokes, some even catching line, but Valovic ran everything down and kept the point alive until Workman overcooked a forehand and hit it long.
“Tucker played really, really well,” Kearsarge Coach Lynn Miller said. “He’s been playing steady and playing smart.”
Just a few minutes after Valovic tied the team score at 1-1, Gilford’s Tyler Hanf finished off an 8-3 win at No. 3 against Charlie O’Connor to put the Golden Eagles up for good. Hanf used a dizzying mix of spins to race out to a 6-1 lead and then held off a late charge from O’Connor for the win.
Connor Craigie earned Gilford’s other singles point with a business-like 8-2 win at No. 4 against Matt Hubley.
The Valovic brothers held a 7-5 lead at first doubles against Grant Workman and Craigie, but the Gilford team came back for a 9-8 (7-3) win. Christian Workman and Hanf won, 8-3, at second doubles against O’Connor and Hubley, and Blais and Danny Searle won, 8-1, at third doubles over Pitts and Sam Shields.
Gilford will face the winner of Saturday’s semifinal between No. 3 Bow and No. 2 Portsmouth Christian. Kearsarge’s season may be over, but having it end in the semifinals was a success.
“After losing four seniors from last year’s team (which also went to the semifinals) I was a little nervous, and when I saw the first few practices I was really nervous,” Miller said. “But we tried whipping them into shape as best we could and I think some of the players have really gotten better, so I’m happy with the season. I was just happing making it to the tournament, never mind to the second round.”
(Tim O’Sullivan can be reached at 369-3341 or tosullivan@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @timosullivan20.)
No. 2 Derryfield 8, No. 6 Concord 1
Key players: Concord – Ethan Crandlemire (8-6 win at No. 6)
Highlights/key moments: It was the sixth straight appearance in the semifinals for the Crimson Tide, but Derryfield was simply too much to handle.
Coach’s quote: “We weren’t just happy to be here, and so the outcome today was disappointing, but the reality is we ran into a buzz saw. Our guys didn’t play badly, but Derryfield has what I consider its best team in 20 years, and they just wouldn’t let us in. Ethan Crandlemire was our MVP, enduring an injury timeout and then recovering to win a long match at number six. Our four graduating senior starters (Aidan Connor, Adam Bryant, Sebastian Hart-Meyer and Matt Chorlian) can take pride in finishing the season strongly and winning a memorable tournament match against Exeter earlier this week.” – Concord’s Dave Page
Records: Concord 11-5; Derryfield 15-1
No. 2 Bow 6, No. 3 Pelham 3
Key players: Bow – Gwen Molind (8-1 win at No. 3), Isabella Urbina (win at No. 4); Lara Chern (8-2 win at No. 5)
Highlights/key moments: Claire Mulvaney and Emma Conley picked up an 8-3 win at No. 3 doubles, while Molind and Urbina teamed up for an 8-1 win the No. 2 spot. The Falcons will play in the title game Wednesday at Derryfield School.
Coach’s quote: “It’s not possible to be any more proud of this team. These girls play tough and work hard for every point, every time they go out on the court.” – Bow’s Jonsey Rainville
Records: Bow 16-0; Pelham 13-3
Bow 12, John Stark 5
Key players: Bow – Jared Reynolds (5 goals), Alex Killion (3 goals, 3 assists), Ryan Tobeler (3 goals, assist), Brendan Ulrich (goal, 2 assists), Chase Chamberlin (12 saves)
Highlights/key moments: Stark trailed 6-1 at halftime but rallied to cut the deficit to 6-4 before the Falcons took over in the fourth quarter to seal the victory.
Coach’s quote: “I’m happy for the guys. This win should get us in the playoffs and now we get the chance to see if we can make any noise in the tournament.” – Bow’s Chris Gaudreau
Records: Bow 6-8; Stark 6-9
Hopkinton 22, Milford 0
Key players: Hopkinton – Joe Cullinan (4 goals, 7 assists), Liam Flanagan (4 goals, 3 assists), Colby Quiet (4 goal, assist), Henry Yianakopolos (3 goals, assist), Jake Tomlinson (4 goals), Justin Durant (goal, assist), Sage Dubois (great defense, goal), Gerry Donahue (6 forced turnovers), Jacob Ashcraft (great defense), Derek Amoth (2 saves)
Highlights/key moments: The Hawks scored early an often, getting out to a 9-0 lead in the first quarter. Faceoff wins and long possessions eventually ensured the shutout.
Coach’s quote: “Today was our senior day, and our nine grads-to-be really came together to maintain possession of the ball and limit scoring opportunities for Milford. We are excited to have finished with an undefeated season and have our eyes set on the playoffs.” – Hopkinton’s Deacon Blue
Records: Hopkinton 14-0; Milford 4-9
Timberlane 14, Merrimack Valley 5
Key players: MV – Talia Dinger (2 goals), Brannigan McNeil (2 goals), Madyn Kenney (assist)
Highlights/key moments: Rebecca Williams scored her first varsity goal but it wouldn’t be enough to help the Pride snap a nine-game slide.
Records: MV 3-11; Timberlane 8-8
Hopkinton 11, Farmington 3
Key players: Hopkinton – Ben McManus (4 IP, 5 K, 0 BB, win; 3-for-4, 2 runs), Dustin Rose (2 hits, 2 RBI), Tucker Windhurst (2 hits, 2 RBI), Michael Baer (defense)
Highlights/key moments: The Hawks scored early (two runs in the first inning, three in the second and three more in the third) and kept the pressure on late (single runs in the fourth, fifth and seventh) to claim the road win in their regular-season finale.
Coach’s quote: “As I said to the guys after the game, 11 wins with just three returning players is pretty good.” – Hopkinton’s Dave Chase
Records: Hopkinton 11-5; Farmington 5-11
Spaulding 7, Concord 3
Key players: Concord – Abby Rochette (2-for-4, RBI), Izzy Dunn (2-for-3, run), Abby Corbett (RBI), Jill Dusseault (RBI)
Highlights/key moments: Concord had 10 hits overall and scored twice in the top of the first, but gave both runs back on errors in the bottom of the inning. The Tide also stranded nine runners, six in scoring position. Spaulding took the lead for good with a three-run fifth.
Coach’s quote: “Really happy with the way we battled every inning, but errors continue to hurt us. We need to regroup and get ready for the playoffs. It’s a whole new season now.” – Concord assistant coach Sandy Smith
Records: Concord 11-7; Spaulding 13-5
Hopkinton 11, Farmington 3
Key players: Hopkinton – Alexis Blanchette (7 IP, 10 K, 1 H, 2 ER; 2-for-4, 2 RBI, 2 runs, double), Gabby Lajeunesse (3-for-5, 2 runs, double), Maddy Eborn (1-for-2, run), Grace Gauthier (defense)
Highlights/key moments: It was a tight game until the Hawks scored four runs in the fifth inning and plated five more in the sixth, which was more than enough support for Blanchette and her one-hit effort from the circle.
Records: Hopkinton 12-4; Farmington 5-11