NASHUA – A few players on the Dover High School girls tennis team stayed for an hour after a two-hour after practice the other day.
That’s what a new strategy takes. Unfortunately, that hard work couldn’t put a dent in one of Division I’s hottest teams as the No. 3 Bishop Guertin Cardinals ended the No. 6 Green Wave’s season 7-2 in a quarterfinal match on Thursday, May 28.
It was still a good attempt by Dover to change things up though, after having been beaten 8-1 by Guertin some 17 days earlier.
“The past few days the girls on this team have worked very hard to relect back on the last time we played,” Dover coach Logan Sherwood said. “We sat down on the grass and asked everyone to identify what they did well, what they did poorly and the strength of their opponent.
“What we came to realize was the best chance for us was to give the what I call junk,” Sherwood continued. “The girls on this BG team are so consistent, it’s hard to beat a consistent rallier. So instead it’s lob, come in, drop shot, hard shot deep. … I’m incredibly proud of the hard work of this entire team.”
“They came out today differently,” Guertin coach Marcel Gamache said of the 10-6 Green Wave. “They came out hitting drop shots and stuff. Our girls saw it, and we said, ‘When you get that serve in, be ready for what’s coming over, and they were there.”
The Cardinals have now won 13 straight matches, surviving two 10-day layoffs, and now head to Derryfield on Monday, June 2 to face the No. 2 Cougars in the Division I semis for the first time in several years.
Dover’s Paige Wilson managed to beat BG’s No. 1 Anna Perrott, a freshman, using that new strategy but the Cards responded by taking the next five matches to wrap it up even before doubles.
Georgie Howell topped Kimberly Tarr 8-5 at No. 2, as did Jaclyn Kriscunas over Jane Mathews at No. 3. Lydia Miller defeated Siena Dambrosio at No. 4, 8-3; Dayan Cottito topped Lily Mozzoni 8-2 at No. 5 and Ainsley Flood bested Dover’s Sara Pellenz 8-2 at No. 6.
Both teams agreed to play doubles with Dover’s only other win coming 8-5 with Wilson/D’ambrosio beating Perrott/Kriscunas 8-5, the last match of the day.
Prior to that BG’s No. 2 team of Howell/Miller beat Tarr/Jane Andrews and Cottito/Flood triumphed over Mozzoni/Pellenz by the same 8-1 score.
“I think both programs are incredibly deep,” Sherwood said. “In this league, if you can have Nos. 4, 5 and 6 be interchangeable, it’s a huge advantage. So yeah, their 4, 5 and 6 are incredibly strong players. Credit to them. They played phenomenal, played a great match.”
This article originally appeared on Fosters Daily Democrat: NH girls tennis, Despite strategy shift, Dover edged by Guertin
About the Author
