The Falmouth boys’ and girls’ tennis teams once again have no peer in Class B.

Saturday afternoon at Colby College in Waterville, both Yachtsmen teams blanked the opposition to win the championship.

The girls made it four championships in succession and six in seven years by virtue of a 5-0 blanking of Waterville, ensuring the team didn’t drop a single point all spring. Falmouth extended its four-year win streak to 61 matches.

The boys also won by a 5-0 score, over Ellsworth, to capture Class B for the third time in six seasons and first time since 2007.

It was the first time since 2006 that both Yachtsmen teams won in the same year.

The girls lost only 13 games in the 10 sets they swept Saturday. First singles player Annie Criscione had the toughest test, beating Waterville’s best player, Colleen O’Donnell, 6-3, 6-4. Analise Kump was flawless at second singles (6-0, 6-0) and Libby Voccola only lost once game at No. 3 singles (6-1, 6-0).  At first doubles, Abby Payson and Steffi Rothweiler cruised, 6-1, 6-1. Katie Carew and Katie Ryan were 6-0, 6-3 victors at No. 2.

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“This season is again a standout, as the varsity team only dropped two sets (155-2) and we can officially boast a winning streak of 61 matches including playoffs, a feat of every match won this year with a score of 5-0 and a run of 41 matches including the playoffs at 5-0,” said Falmouth coach Sandy Stone. “Our varsity co-captains, Annie, Analise and Steffi, set such a positive tone and high bar of mentorship. And I think the girls had fun. The depth of the team was again amazing due to the strength of our singles and skill of our doubles.”

You might as well get used to Falmouth winning. The Yachtsmen have no seniors among their top seven and will be heavy favorites to do it again in 2012.

“We could return our winning varsity roster intact,” Stone said. “We may have a strong eighth grader or two coming up and the top of the JVs hoping to challenge into the varsity lineup.”

The boys won the 2006 and 2007 Class B championships, but lost to Caribou in the 2008 state final, Yarmouth in the 2009 regional final and York a year ago in the quarterfinals.

This year, the Yachtsmen had no peer and they too were emphatic in victory Saturday.

First singles player Justin Brogan didn’t lose a game (6-0, 6-0). At second singles, Brendan McCarthy was pushed, but won, 6-1, 6-3. Taylor Dimick cruised at No. 3 (6-0, 6-1). At first doubles, Harlan Cutshall and Sam Holland were victorious, 6-3, 6-2. Connor Burfeind and Tom Wilbert were triumphant, 6-2, 6-2, at No. 2 doubles.

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“I was very pleased with the way these players came together as a team, realizing that tennis is essentially an individual sport,” said longtime Falmouth coach Bob McCully. “The seniors were great at welcoming two outstanding freshmen onto the team. For the past three years, we have had very good teams, but we had to face even better teams. This year, we had an excellent blend of promising younger players and veterans that were anxious to win a title.

“It was a very deep team, which made it difficult to establish a lineup,” he added. “The singles players were pretty evident, but doubles are extremely important, and it took a lot of experimentation to establish two pairs that were the best fit for each other. I felt badly for Hutch Hurwitz. He is a solid player who has lettered three times, has worked very hard and has steadily improved. He would play on just about any other team, and I am counting on him to be an important part of next year’s team.”

Speaking of next year, the Yachtsmen figure to be near or at the top of the heap again.

“Harlan and Connor are seniors and will be missed, but Sam and Tom are sophomores who will continue to improve and be essential parts of future teams,” said McCully. “I anticipate that we will be a very strong team going forward, as these outstanding players continue to develop.”

Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffer@theforecaster.net. Follow him on Twitter: @foresports.


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