Bedford, n.h.
Playing in their final NHIAA Division II match during Wednesday’s championship clash with top-ranked Portsmouth, the Marauders won four of six singles matches and survived a pair of tight, tension-filled doubles battles for a 6-3 win at Bedford Memorial Park.
It caps three consecutive undefeated seasons for Hanover, which has successfully petitioned to begin Division I play next season. The No. 2 Marauders were 16-0 this spring to make it an even 50 straight victories.
“This is wonderful; it’s amazing,” said second-year Hanover coach Liz Murray, whose program returns every starter next season. “I think no matter what happened today, we knew moving forward that we’re ready to make the jump to Division I. That being said, winning today gives us good momentum heading into next year.”
Added junior Izzi Davis: “We wanted to go out with a bang.”
That meant getting past a 16-0 Clippers team that lost only nine games all season and was chomping at the bit for victory after finishing as state runner-up three of the last five seasons, including an 8-1 loss to Hanover last year. While the Marauders had every reason to be confident — they’d won by an average of seven points per contest heading into the final, despite a spate of illnesses this season — they entered Wednesday’s date with a measure of apprehension. After all, the stakes were higher than any other point this season, and taking on an unfamiliar Seacoast opponent that plays a more difficult schedule during the regular season always creates uncertainty. Portsmouth had added a new No. 1 singles player in Maine transfer Sage Winter, and only three Clipper starters from 2015 were back. There were no rematches from last year’s final on Wednesday.
“The girls are ready; I’m not,” said Murray after singles matches were underway. “I’m extremely nervous.”
Hanover No. 1 Rine Uhm could sense the tension. “This is probably the most stressful match I’ve ever been a part of,” she said.
As it turned out, Uhm had a relatively easy time against Winter, winning 8-2. The aggressive Davis took care of Portsmouth senior Divya Mudhireddy at second singles, 8-1, and consistent forehand specialist Margaret Werner withstood a late rally by Ayden Ricker to win at No. 3, 8-4.
Mindy Wu kept it rolling for Hanover with an 8-0 win over Alyssa Cook at No. 6, but Portsmouth kept itself in contention by capturing Nos. 4 and 5.
The Clippers’ Rachel Gardner and Hanna Street both overcame early deficits for 8-5 wins over Ellen Lamm and Bri Laycock, respectively.
“You’ve got to give the Portsmouth girls kudos for taking those matches,” Murray said. “We expected a battle against them, and that’s what we got.”
Hanover needed just one doubles win to clinch victory, but Portsmouth ensured getting to it would be difficult. At No. 2, Mudhireddy and Gardner led throughout in an 8-1 win over Werner and Lamm, and No. 1 and No. 3 were both back-and-forth.
Street and Cook had Laycock and Wu in a bind at No. 3, leading 4-3 with hard-driving rallies. Eventually, the Hanover duo turned the match in their favor with lob shots, building a 7-4 lead and clinching the match — and the championship — on Wu’s volley after the 12th game went to deuce.
“I think we were a little tired at first (after the singles matches) and needed a little time to find our rhythm,” said Laycock, a sophomore.
Added Wu: “There was definitely a lot of tension. All day long, we’d been trying to find the right mental state.”
Uhm and Davis traded points with Winter and Gardner, not leading by more than a game until it was 7-5. They won, 8-5, to send Hanover home happy.
Portsmouth coach Wendy Poutre was also glad — glad to know she won’t need to deal with the Marauders next season.
“That was a great match. Beautiful tennis,” she said to all in attendance after receiving the runner-up trophy. “Hanover, we’re happy to see you off to D-I,” she added to laughs.
Return Volleys: Like last year, Hanover’s players and Murray sported temporary tattoos of pirate ships, in honor of “going to the ’ship,” as in the state championship. … During the prematch ceremony, event director Mike Young suggested the score cards featuring “Dartmouth green” numerals over white backgrounds be used to signal Hanover’s scores. The Marauders ended up using the white-on-black placards as customary for the visiting or lower-seeded team. … Poutre’s mother, Anita Murphy, was on hand to cheer for the Clippers. Murphy is in her 38th season coaching Lewiston (Maine) High and has corralled 12 Class A championships with the Blue Devils, most recently in 2011. … Hanover, at one point, led all six singles matches, while Portsmouth held leads early in all three doubles matches. … Hanover loses seniors Emma Riessen and Marion Miller to graduation. … It was the Marauders’ fifth title overall, all since 2005.
Jared Pendak can be reached at jpendak@vnews.com or 603-727-3225.