Division 2 tennis: Westborough boys, Longmeadow girls rule the state

CAMBRIDGE – Kaden Chen watched Tim Vargas’s forehand heave sail long, then collapsed on the court, completely spent.

Chen’s Westborough teammates didn’t take long to dash onto the court, hoist him up and celebrate.

Chen outlased Vargas in a third-set tiebreaker at No. 1 singles, and the No. 1 Rangers beat the No. 3 Duxbury Dragons 3-2 in the Division 2 boys tennis state championship at the duPont Tennis Courts on Saturday at MIT.

The win ended Westborough’s streak of three consecutive defeats in the state championships, including to Duxbury last year.

After forcing the tiebreaker with a break, Chen quickly went up 6-1, only to have Vargas win four consecutive points. Chen served for the match, eventually pinning Vargas in the back corner with a forehand.

Vargas lunged for the ball and managed to volley it high into the air, but the ball sailed well behind the back line to give Chen the 6-2, 5-7, 7-5 (5) win.

“I just try to stay in the point,” said Chen, who finished an undefeated sophomore season with the Rangers’ first win since 2016. “In these big points, there’s no room for any errors, there’s no room for any small, careless mistakes.”

All three Westborough (19-2) wins came in three sets. In No. 2 doubles, Michael Ku and Tyler Lattanzio beat Ted Collins and Willie Pierce 4-6, 6-1, 7-5, and in No. 2 singles, Srinjoy Ghosh beat Pete Burnham 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.

The Rangers were no strangers to long matches, as coach Leonard O’Neil deliberately stacked the back end of his schedule with tough teams to test his team’s resilience.

“All those matches were over three hours, all nip-and-tuck, and a lot of three setters,” O’Neil said. “You prepare for something like this, and when it actually comes to fruition, you get excited, because it worked.”

Duxbury (20-2) got on the board first, as Taylor Bettencourt beat Jordan Hlawek 6-3, 6-0 at two-singles. Bennett Stout and Tucker Catalano kept the Dragons’ hopes for back-to-back trophies alive at one-doubles, gutting out a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over Brendan Estaphan and Eehab Khan.

Longmeadow girls rule

CAMBRIDGE – Sarah Tiru kept Amelia Maw deep in the court with her high, arcing lobs.

Forced to hit long return after long return, Maw eventually hit one too far.

Tiru beat Maw in three sets at No. 1 singles, and the No. 2 Longmeadow Lancers beat the No. 1 Notre Dame Academy-Hingham Cougars 3-2 in a battle of unbeaten teams in the Division 2 girls tennis state championship Saturday at the duPont Tennis Courts at MIT.

“She’s one of the toughest people I’ve ever met,” said Longmeadow coach Michael Framarin. “I had complete faith in her, and she delivered for us.”

Tiru and Maw split the first two sets, and Tiru led 4-1 in the third set before Maw came back with three straight wins. Tiru held serve to go up 5-4, then broke Maw in the 10th game of the set to win 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 for the team’s first title since 1991.

“I’ve played Amelia twice, and both times I’ve lost to her,” Tiru said. “I realized after the first set that if I can keep her back and deep in the court, she’s going to hit me short balls, and that’s my time to attack.”

The Lancers’ doubles teams powered the team to an early lead, as Ellen Kennedy and Marly Ducharme beat Molly Dunigan and Julia Walsh at No. 2 doubles, 6-1, 6-2. Grace Tyler and Lia Manoussoff beat Clara Healey and Skye Bunge at No. 1 doubles, 6-3, 6-3, to put Longmeadow (23-0) ahead with just two singles matches left.

Sophia Lirio put the Cougars (19-1) on the board with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Sophie Dove at No. 2 singles. Notre Dame’s Vivienne LaGrassa battled to a 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 win over Bailey Downes at third singles to knot the match at two wins apiece, setting the stage for Tiru’s victory