Westborough boys tennis overcomes Duxbury for D2 state championship
The Westborough boys tennis team lost three state finals in a row entering Saturday’s D2 championship game against Duxbury. The Rangers broke through.
The spring sports season officially came to a close when Westborough’s Kaden Chen lay flat on his back after his team outlasted Duxbury in a lengthy Division 2 state boys tennis final at MIT in Boston. The moment was a long way from Riley Caulfield’s April 10 no-hitter — on a day when the Millis senior also earned her 100th career hit.
Many momentous milestones occurred in between — from a nine-run playoff comeback to a Top 10 ESPN nod. (The poll will close next Monday, June 24).
Which one ranks above the rest? You decide with the poll below. Here’s a rundown for a refresher:
The senior notched her 600th career strikeout and had her 100th-career hit in a 2-0 Elite 8 playoff win over West Boylston. She also struck out 13 batters for the Blue Raiders.
The Hawks trailed 9-0 to Triton in the fourth inning of a Division 3 quarterfinal game, but did not allow another run and responded by scoring four runs in the last part of the fourth. Three frames later, and facing elimination with one out in the seventh, Audrey Lenox’s double plated the tying and winning runs to cap a dramatic comeback in a 10-9 victory as the Hawks advanced to the state title game.
Behind wins from Liz Hopkins (javelin), Lily DeForge (discus), Sarah Dumas (pentathlon, 100 and 400 hurdles), Franklin’s girls won the program’s first Division 1 title.
Trailing 3-2 in the bottom of the seventh inning, in a first-round playoff game against Chelmsford, sophomore Mason Tarantino hit his first varsity home run to even the score. His senior brother Cooper stepped up to the plate and hit a walk-off grand slam to win it for the Warriors.
The senior ripped a run-scoring single for her 100th career hit in a 7-0 victory over Bellingham, then ended the game with a no-hitter. (Two days later, she recorded her 500th strikeout).
The senior placed third in the pentathlon at New Balance Outdoor Nationals and set a school record with 4,825 points. She earned her fourth All-America selection in the process.
After three years of losses in the finals, the Rangers needed every last point to break through. Westborough’s No. 1 singles player Kaden Chen outlasted Duxbury’s Tim Vargas 6-2, 5-7, 7-6 (6-5) for a 3-2 team victory at MIT to secure the title.
The junior won the triple jump at New Balance Outdoor Nationals in Philadelphia and set a school record of 42 feet, 2.25 inches. She also earned All-America status.
The 300-point scorer and senior, who is bound for the University of Connecticut, twirled in a back-the-back goal against Nauset in the Sweet 16 in Ashland’s 19-8 lacrosse victory. Megennis had finished with 10 points (5 goals, 5 assists) in the game, but her pretty tally was ranked No. 8 on SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays of the night.
In a season in which he earned US Lacrosse Academic All-America honors, the senior scored his 300th career point against Nipmuc on May 13. (His 200th goal came just 10 days later).
The Hiller senior who is headed to St. Bonaventure broke Ken Lysik’s 2002 single-season points record with his 105th point in a game on May 18.
The Dover-Sherborn grad was named by the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association as both the National Player of the Year and Attacker of the Year as Middlebury won the national championship for the third year in a row.
While running in the second of three heats and entering the weekend with the ninth fastest time in the state, the junior still won the 400 dash at the Meet of Champions in Fitchburg.
With a lineup of one junior, three sophomores and three freshmen, the Raiders defeated Boston Latin 4-1 on Saturday at MIT to claim their first state title since 2016.
With a victory over St. John’s of Shrewsbury on April 16, Natick volleyball coach Peter Suxho earned his 500th career victory. He was presented a plaque nine days later before a win over Weymouth.
