The Masco girls’ tennis team dominated Swampscott across the board, picking up another win in their successful 2024 campaign.
“The drive and determination of every varsity player is inspiring. Each one is focused to play her best,” said head coach Kathy Farnham.
Junior Teagan Skulley had a dominating performance, not losing a single game, winning both sets 6-0.
Skulley’s performance was headlined by her fast shot, which allowed her to overpower her opponents, putting them on their heels and allowing Skulley to take the match easily.
On the second court, senior captain Mastrogiovanni also dominated in her match by using great touch on her shots to make returns from her opponent very difficult.
Mastrogiovanni was able to use the whole court effectively to wear down her opponent.
“Using the entire court helps me by giving me time to set up for my next shot while my opponent takes longer to get their shot and it tires my opponent out more,” she said.
In the final singles match of the night, junior Sophia Donnellan didn’t lose a point in her match, thanks to her great handle on the ball. Donnellan faced many difficult half-volley shots that were close to the ground and she was able to play the hop effectively to be able to win both sets by a score of 6-0.
“My opponent did a great job keeping me on my toes and forcing me to hit these half-volleys,¨ said Donnellan. ¨I actually love hitting half-volleys and find them super fun to hit which has led to my progression in my ability to hit these shots. They key to hitting these shots is timing.¨
Masco would continue their domination into first doubles, as senior Isabelle Kelly and sophomore Sienna Anvari won their match.
Anvari had many low arching shots that were tough for Swampscott to handle.
These low arching shots, along with Kelly’s amazing control, allowed Masco to win the first set 6-2 and the second set 6-1.
Second doubles featured the most competitive match of the day, as Masco senior Paige Hurton and junior Hannah Pietropaolo faced off against Swampscott’s May Hood and Eve Burn. As a result of injuries, Hurton and Pietropaolo have not been playing together for very long.
“I have been playing with Hannah for the last couple of weeks,” said Hurton. “She is a lefty and I am a righty, so that was definitely an adjustment from playing with Isabelle Kelly. With Kelly I would normally play on the ad [left] side of the court, but now that playing with a lefty I am on the deuce [right] side of the court. We are still getting used to each other’s playing styles, but we are only improving with every match.”
Despite the lack of playing time together, the pair looked strong in the first set. After being down 2-1 to start the set, they would go on to win 5 of the next 6 points winning the set 6-3.
The second set would be more of a back and forth affair, and required a tie breaking game. The Swampscott pair would prevail in the set, winning it 7-5. This meant that the match would be decided by a ten point tiebreaker.
In the tiebreaker, like she had done for the rest of the game, Pietropaolo had an attack mindset, overpowering Swampscott with very powerful shots that won them the tiebreaker 10-4.
All and all, coach Farnham has been impressed by the team’s performance this season.
“This season we have 21 matches on the calendar. Six of these matches are non-NEC league competitors including the 2023 Division 3 and Division 4 State champions,” said Farnham. “This is the most matches Masconomet girls’ tennis has ever played in a season. Needless to say, the players were up for [the challenge], and it has made them stronger and more focused as the season progressed.”