By STEPHEN MARTELLUCCI
LYNNFIELD — Six members of the Lynnfield High girls’ tennis team were named to the Cape Ann League All-Star team this spring. There were two singles players that made the roster along with two doubles teams.
At first singles, Paige Martino, not only made the team for the fourth-straight year but she was also the CAL Kinney Division Player of the Year for the second-consecutive season.
She played first singles for four years and had an overall record of 73-13. This year she was 17-3.
“She was an outstanding all-court player with the ability to vary her styles and strategy to set the school record for most career wins,” said Pioneers head coach Craig Stone.
Lily Alves, at second singles, made the CAL All-Stars for the first time in her career. The junior co-captain went 17-3.
“She is a model of consistency, with an impressive development of skill building in only three years of competitive tennis,” said Stone. “She wears her opponents down physically and mentally.”
The first doubles team of senior captain Ella Hayman (15-3) and junior Vicky McCrann,(15-4) made the All-Stars for the first time. As a duo they finished at 10-3.
“They combined ground-strokes, lobs, and volleys while complimenting each other’s play to become one of the top doubles team around,” said Stone.
The second team of freshmen Kathleen Brown (12-1) and Christine Choi (10-1), round out the Pioneer All-Stars. They went 10-1 together.
“Their chemistry on the court, combined with their constantly improving techniques made for a very talented team,” said Stone.
It was another solid year for the Pioneers as they reached the MIAA Division 4 state semifinals before failing to the eventual state champs, Hamilton-Wenham, 3-2, back on June 11.
Lynnfield finished at 18-3 overall.
In the CAL, they won the Kinney Division title going 11-2 in the league. It was the team’s first league crown since 2015.
Three members received awards at the end-of-season banquet held recently.
Martino took home the Most Contributed Award.
Alves took home the Outstanding Achievement Award.
Hayman received the Coaches Award and the Sharla Caico Sieve Team Spirit Award.
“It was a season of constant improvement which culminated in a third-consecutive appearance in the the Final Four,” said Stone, who just finished his 44th-year as head coach. “Players developed new strategies, learned to play out of their comfort zone, and supported each other throughout the season. Credit must be given to the players, not only for their improvement, but for their comradely and team spirit.”
The Pioneers will lose Martino, Hayman, Mariana Angulo and Parminder Saini to graduation.
“The senior class graduates with a four year, 64-23 match record,” pointed out Stone. “We had an elite eight finish in 2022, final four finish in 2023, finalist in 2024, and a CAL Kinney Division Championship and another final four finish in 2025. They distinguished themselves as one of the top teams in Division 4 since the new state realignment that began in 2022 and set the bar for teams in the future to reach for.”
Next year, the Pioneers are expecting 12 veterans back.
Four of them will be the new captains, Alves, Victoria Clancy, Gianna Micieli, and Vicky McCrann. All four players will be seniors next year.