CARIBOU, Maine — Once again, John Habeeb has a pair of very competitive tennis teams under his tutelage.
The Viking squads have put together excellent won-loss records and are near the top of the Eastern Maine Class B standings.
The Caribou boys are undefeated and Habeeb loves the experience of his singles players and chemistry of his doubles teams.
Seniors Michael Marquis and Brendan Cyr and junior Ethan Plourde are the singles starters and all three have come through the recreation department and middle school programs and spend a lot of time on the courts.
Marquis is a two-time state singles tourney qualifier and has lost just one match all season.
“He is consistent, has great endurance and possesses a lot of wisdom,” Habeeb said of his No. 1 player.
Cyr, a lefthander, puts good spin on his serve and forehand and is a steady, athletic performer out of the No. 2 slot in the singles ladder.
Plourde has gone undefeated in regular season matches so far and is an aggressive, all-around player who anticipates well.
Junior Austin Scott and freshman Alec Cyr make up the first doubles team. Scott is an experienced doubles player who is very crafty around the net, while Cyr has bolstered the doubles teams with his excellent play as a ninth-grader. In fact, Cyr has also filled in at singles when needed and has plenty of potential.
The No. 2 doubles teams consists of sophomore Austin Cheplic along with either Emerson Duplissie-Cyr or Seth Beidelman, both freshmen. Cheplic plays good defense and steps up on big points of a match. Habeeb said there is very little separating the talent of Duplissie-Cyr and Beidelman, who have a challenge match scheduled at practice this week to determine who will be the starter for the remainder of the season.
Dylan and Dustin Coty, both seniors, round out the team.
“I think in the playoffs we can be competitive with the other top teams like Ellsworth, Camden Hills and Waterville,” Habeeb said. “If we stay undefeated in the regular season, I think we’ll finish second, but a loss along the way could put us fifth. Either way, I look for this team to be right there.”
The Viking girls lost their first match of the season back in mid-April to Mount Desert Island, but have bounced back to go unbeaten since that opener.
“Even in that loss we were very competitive despite getting in just one outdoor practice heading into it, so I was very proud of how the team played down there,” Habeeb said.
Caribou had some big holes to fill from last year’s team as No. 1 singles player Erin Patton and No. 3 Clara Collins both graduated and Bria Judd, a senior this year who was a top doubles player in 2014, opted to play softball.
The team has responded thanks to a talented freshman class who has come in and made an impact.
Gabrielle Marquis, one of those ninth-graders, plays No. 1 singles and has made it into the state singles tourney after winning both her matches in the regional qualifier Saturday.
“She is very promising,” Habeeb said. “Gabrielle has learned a topspin forehand which you don’t see often up here. She is well rounded, very competitive and athletic.”
In second singles is Connor Spencer, a sophomore who played doubles with Judd last season. Habeeb calls Spencer “very steady” and someone who plays hard and loves the sport, evidenced by the amount of time she spends practicing in and out of season.
The team’s lone senior, Makayla Bouchard, is a fourth-year player who plays No. 3 singles after spending last season at No. 2. She plays a power game and is a steady performer, according to her coach.
Freshmen Ashley Matlock and Ciara Richards team up at first doubles and have gone undefeated so far. Matlock has been hampered with injuries the last couple years, but is a good tennis talent who has impressed by working her way up the ladder since the beginning of the season. Habeeb likes her athleticism, work ethic and camaraderie with her other teammates.
Richards, whose older sister Ashley was a former Viking standout, is a fiery and aggressive player who loves to get into the net to put pressure on the opposition.
Freshman Danielle Hanson and sophomore Taylor Fournier-Belanger make up the No. 2 doubles team. Hanson is a good match player who excels in clutch situations, while Belanger provides experience and is a solid contributor.
Freshman Kyra Thibeault and sophomore Heaven Melanson are the team’s other players. Corinne Corbin serves as the manager.
Jane Hunter returns as Habeeb’s assistant coach.
Habeeb said his team with four freshmen in the starting lineup has been up to the task all season and has a chance to finish in double digits in victories, which he said would be impressive.
“I love this group,” he said. “They play hard and are just fun to be around.”
