Shire tennis readies for postseason

HOULTON, Maine — It has been a wet spring for getting in tennis matches for the Houlton boys and girls squads this season.

Under the direction of coach Nancy Mooers, both teams have made the most of the challenges and are headed to the postseason again this year.

“Both teams have returning players who received Aroostook County and/or PVC honors last year,” Mooers said. “There are also some very talented first-time players out for the teams this year. I look for close matches with most of the regular season opponents and believe we’ll have some playoff matches.”

The Houlton boys finished 7-5 on the season and are ranked sixth in the Class C North standings as of Friday morning. The top four seeds in the region get a bye for the upcoming postseason, so that means the Shire boys will find themselves in a preliminary playoff Tuesday, May 28, hosting the No. 11 seed (currently Fort Kent with a 5-7 record). Houlton beat Fort Kent 4-1 and 5-0 during the regular season.

Members of the Shire boys squad are seniors Nolan Porter and Ben Grant; juniors Jaron Gentle, Nate DeLucca, Isaac Vega and Matt Seder; and freshmen Gage Bartlett, Jadon Gentle, Caleb Solomon and Isaiah Gentle.

The Shire girls finish their campaign with a 6-6 record and are ranked third in Class C North as of Friday morning. If the standings hold, Houlton will get a first-round bye and face the winner of the No. 6-No. 11 matchup (currently Piscataquis and Penobscot Valley) on Thursday, May 30, in the quarterfinals. The Shires did not face either opponent during the regular season.

Members of the Houlton girls team are seniors Jamie Brown, Jillian Haggerty; juniors Sydney Lorom, Samantha Condon, Maddie Grant and Grace Johnson; sophomore Reagan Perfitt and freshman Eden Davis.