CAMBRIDGE – This wasn’t the year for the Westborough boys’ tennis team.
The second-seeded Rangers came incredibly close, but were ultimately unable to defeat the top-seeded Duxbury Dragons at the MIAA Division 2 championship match on June 18. The Rangers lost 3-2.
The loss represents Westborough’s second straight loss in the state finals. The Rangers lost both contests by the score of 3-2.
Duxbury jumped out to an early lead.
Taylor Bettencourt – the Dragons’ third singles player – took an almost immediate lead over Westborough’s Jorge Garcia. Garcia battled hard throughout the match, but Bettencourt defeated him in straight sets (6-2, 6-3) to put Duxbury ahead.
Duxbury went even further ahead once first doubles duo Peter Evans and Bennett Stout won against the Rangers’ Eehab Khan and Michael Ku in straight sets (6-2, 6-1).
Westborough freshman Kaden Chen was a bright spot for the struggling team. Chen dismantled Duxbury second singles player Colby Hall in straight sets (6-2, 6-1), giving the Rangers their first point of the night.
After Chen’s match ended, Duxbury led 2-1 with two matches remaining. Westborough had no room for error; they needed to win both matches to claim the state title. Although every Ranger except for Chen had dropped their opening set, Westborough began to storm back.
Srinjoy Ghosh – Westborough’s first singles player – battled with Duxbury’s Tim Vargas all afternoon. After Vargas took the first, Ghosh grabbed the second to force the match into the third set.
The Westborough second doubles team also competed hard. Brendan Estaphan and Jordan Hlawek found their stride in the second and third sets, eventually defeating Duxbury’s team (2-6, 6-4, 6-4) to draw Westborough within one point.
It was down to Ghosh and Vargas.
The third set was nothing short of spectacular. After almost two hours of tennis, both athletes emptied the tank to win the match. Vargas’ powerful serve and forehand pushed Ghosh around the court, but Ghosh was agile enough to return the serve with powerful shots of his own. Both sides played with perseverance and heart.
Crowds gathered around the MIT duPont Tennis Court complex to see the match. Lines of fans three to four people deep pressed against the fence to watch the high-pressure, championship-level tennis.
Ghosh was broken early in the set, and although he played with great tenacity until the end, he ultimately fell short. Vargas took the third set, winning the match (7-5, 4-6, 6-4) and clinching the championship for Duxbury.
After the loss, Ghosh was clearly disappointed, sharing several moments with Head Coach Leonard O’Neil after the match.
“[I told him that] we don’t get here without him,” O’Neil told the Community Advocate. “[He’s] looking at the here and now… for a teenager, he feels like maybe he let the team down and he lost the match for the team. That’s not true; they had to win three other matches. That’s what I told him – I said that he wasn’t out there alone.”
“Teammates came out and supported him after the match – they all came running out – and I told him that that’s how important you are to the team,” O’Neil added.
O’Neil also said that tennis can be an incredibly mentally challenging game, especially in high-pressure situations.
“We’ve been talking about the mental aspect of tennis all year long – don’t give in, be in the moment, don’t get too far ahead of yourself whether you’re winning or losing, stay grounded, never give up, and stay scrappy. We’ve been talking about that all year, and that’s why we play who we play,” he said.
