LEWISTON — When you coach tennis at Falmouth High, there are plenty of years when you understand – considering the pool of proven talent – that a state title is practically a given.

Sandra Stone, who has said she will step down after this season, will send six of the seven girls who won the 2014 Class A title in dominant fashion onto the Lewiston High courts Saturday against Lewiston.

The only surprise from Thursday’s Western Maine title victory was Scarborough prevented a shutout by winning at second doubles, the first time any team earned a point this year against Falmouth’s full lineup.

The Falmouth boys are a different story. They, too, are defending Class A champions but their lineup underwent a dramatic transformation after graduation claimed six seniors from the 2014 team that went 16-0.

“I’m thrilled,” Coach Bob McCully said. “To graduate six of your top seven and come back with a competitive team has been great.”

Senior Aidan McGrory, who rose from third to first singles, leads a lineup that includes four sophomores and two freshmen.

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“Best captain I’ve ever had,” said McCully, nearing the end of his 44th season as coach. “He really looks out for younger kids.”

For the second straight year, Falmouth will meet Mt. Ararat, which has five of its top seven from a team that lost 3-2 to Falmouth last June. The Eagles won this year’s Eastern Maine title 3-2 over top-seeded Brunswick to avenge their only loss.

McGrory will face sophomore Nick Mathieu, a two-time finalist in the state singles tournament, at No. 1 singles. Freshman Peter Mao, who plays one rung below Mathieu on the Mt. Ararat ladder, reached the Round of 16 in the singles tourney before meeting the eventual champ, Isaac Salas of Waynflete. Mao will face fellow freshman Alex Klemperer, who lost in the Round of 32.

“That will make it tough at the top,” McCully said. “I’m just hoping depth can come through.”

Falmouth beat two-time defending Class B state champion Cape Elizabeth twice by 4-1 scores this season and lost only to seven-time defending Class C champ Waynflete, 3-2.

“I didn’t know what to expect at the start of the season,” McCully said. “But they got better and better. They really bought into the team concept. They’ve been supportive of each other and supportive of me.”

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The Class A matches will begin at 12:45 p.m. Class B starts at 9:15 a.m. with Cape Elizabeth looking for its third straight state title in a rematch with the Camden Hills boys, whose lineup is virtually unchanged from a year ago. The Capers, meanwhile, return only three starters.

Also in Class B, the girls of Greely (13-2) will attempt to defend their state title against Mt. Desert Island (14-1). Not since 2003 (Camden Hills) has an Eastern Maine team won the Class B girls’ state title.

In Class C, no Eastern Maine girls’ team has won a state title and only two boys’ teams (George Stevens Academy in 2004 and Madawaska in 1999) have done so. Salas leads Waynflete against George Stevens in a quest for an eighth straight title while North Yarmouth Academy (12-3) takes on Van Buren (11-0). Both matches are at 4:15 p.m.

 


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