The Viking girls’ tennis team kept its season-long winning streak alive, while the boys suffered defeat for the first time in home matches against John Bapst Saturday that saw all four squads enter with undefeated records.
The Caribou girls upended the Crusaders, 4-1, in the much-anticipated matchup. The Vikings clinched the match following the first three competitions as the first doubles team of Ciara Richards and Danielle Hanson beat Mackenzie Baber and Robyn Henry, 8-1; the second doubles team of Hailey Holmquist and Kyra Thibeault got past Spirit Huang and Grace Harmon, 8-5; and No. 3 singles player Ashley Matlock easily handled Miranda Coleman, 8-0.
Gabrielle Marquis, the Vikings’ top singles player, scored an 8-3 triumph over Crystal Bell before Caribou’s lone loss in an individual match came in second singles as Conner Spencer was nipped by Alice Podolsky, 8-6.
The Vikings girls took an 11-0 record into Tuesday’s regular season finale at Presque Isle. Caribou is currently in second place in Class B North, behind only Waterville.
The Caribou boys were beaten by the Crusaders, 3-2. The Vikings’ wins came in doubles as Austin Scott and Bailey Griffeth topped Minh Lee and Tien Duong, 8-2, and Austin Cheplic and Gabriel Rand doubled up on Tommy Carmack and Noah McCarthy, 8-4.
Both Emerson Duplissie-Cyr and Alec Cyr fell in their singles matches, losing by identical 8-4 scores. Ethan Plourde was unable to take a game against one of the top players in the state, Paul Branch, in the No. 1 singles match.
Caribou was at 10-1 and in fourth place entering the match against the Wildcats Tuesday that wrapped up the regular season.
By placing among the top four, both Viking squads will avoid having to play in the preliminary round of the playoffs and will most likely host quarterfinals on Thursday, June 2, 2016.
The state singles tournament gets underway Friday in Lewiston and five Caribou players will be involved. Marquis, Spencer and Matlock will compete in the girls’ tourney, while Plourde and Alec Cyr made it into the boys’ bracket following victories at the May 14 qualifier in Caribou.
