2009 Girls Tennis
Name%School%Year
Singles
Jackie Carroll%Central Catholic%Frosh.
Katie Cosgrove%Methuen%Sr.
Meghan Cokely%Haverhill%Frosh.
Katie Veasey%Timberlane%Sr.
*Lauren Wilmarth%Phillips%Sr.
Doubles
Laurel Salladay%Pinkerton%Sr.
Summer Burns%Pinkerton%Soph.
Frannie McFall%North Andover%Jr.
Alex Specht%North Andover%Soph.
* — Eagle-Tribune MVP
Honorable Mention
Andover — Kelsey Chapman, Soph.; Reid Campbell, Soph.; Sarah Arvidson, Frosh.
Brooks — Hallie Malitsky, Sr.; Annie Baron, Sr.
Central Catholic — Sarah Costello, Sr.; Maggie Hillman, Jr.; Lauren Boehm, Soph.
Greater Lawrence — Rose Scott, Jr.; Vanessa Noessi, Jr.
Haverhill — Stacey Swartz, Sr.; Kristin Kelly, Sr.; Callie Garrison, Sr.
Lawrence — Sharlene Del Rosario, Sr.; Angela Castillo, Sr.
Londonderry — Erica LeBlanc, Soph.
Methuen — Julie Platz, Jr.
North Andover — Hannah Lahey, Frosh.
North Reading — Jackie Harrow, Sr.
Pelham — Meghan Szmyt, Sr.; Nicole Mastacouris, Jr.
Pentucket — Karena Webber, Sr.; Rachael Downey, Frosh.
Phillips — Elizabeth Kelly, Soph.; Fay Feghali, Frosh.
Pinkerton — Kelsey McKechnie, Sr.
Salem — Caitlin Peters, Sr.; Danica Blakslee, Soph.
Sanborn — Kim Surette, Jr.; Shayla Santos, Soph.
Jackie Carroll, Central Catholic Freshman, Singles
MVC Division 1 MVP. Went 13-0 in regular season in first singles. Beat standouts Katie Cosgrove (Methuen), Meghan Cokely (Haverhill) and Sarah Arvidson (Andover). Coach Jodi Michaud said, "I can only expect that she gets better from here." Member of swim team. May someday equal older sister Amanda, who was a four-time Eagle-Tribune All-Star.
Katie Cosgrove, Methuen Senior, Singles
One of the greats ever from Methuen. Repeat Eagle-Tribune All-Star. Repeated as MVC Division 2 MVP. Went 11-4 this spring (10-3 MVC). Ranked 15th in a class of approximately 500. Four-year band member (tenor saxophone and piccolo). Only started playing tennis as a freshman. Plans to major in biology at Northeastern.
Meghan Cokely, Haverhill freshman, Singles
All-MVC selection posted 16-2 regular-season. Started playing tennis at age 4. Also plays varsity volleyball. Mother played for Lincoln-Sudbury in high school. Said coach David Reed, "She's more than just a base-liner. She's got a big serve, she can slice and cut the ball, and she really creates havoc on other side." Helped Cedardale Juniors place ninth at Nationals in the fall of 2006.
Katie Veasey, Timberlane Senior, Singles
Went 11-3 at first singles. Reached Round of 16 in state open. Just her third year in the sport. Eagle-Tribune doubles All-Star last season. Said coach Beth Vitas, "She's probably the best female player to come out of Timberlane in the last 15 years. She had an incredible year." Ranked in top 10 percent of her class. Co-captain of ski team. Will attend the University of Vermont.
Laurel Salladay and Summer Burns, Pinkerton Doubles
Went 13-2. Won three matches to advance to quarterfinals at State Open. Salladay was 13-3 and Burns 11-3 in singles. Salladay had 37-9 career singles record. Member of PALS (Pinkerton and Little Students). Salladay hopes to play at Ithaca. Both are members of Nutfield Tennis Association. Burns started out as a JV player as a freshman but quickly became a varsity star.
Frannie McFall and Alex Specht, North Andover Doubles
Posted 14-4 record, 13-3 in regular season. Made the North Open quarterfinals. First year together at first doubles. McFall, a three-year varsity player, also plays volleyball (two-year starter) and has helped start business club at school. Specht was an Eagle-Tribune Honorable Mention last year. Her older sister, Alicia, was a three-year letterman for the Scarlet Knights.
Lauren Wilmarth, Phillips Senior, singles
Andover native. "Once she arrived at Phillips freshman year, she turned the whole program around," coach Martha Grant said. "I'm not sure Andover tennis will be this powerful again without her." Wilmarth, an Eagle-Tribune All-Star as a junior, was unbeaten in the NEPSAC this year with a 9-0-1 singles record. Not even a pair of partially-torn ankle ligaments, which she suffered midway through the season, could stop her. Won three matches in NEPSAC postseason play before falling in the final, Ranked sixth in New England by the USTA. Signed a tennis scholarship to UConn. Scored 750 on her math SATs. Will study animal science and is working at Andover's River Road Veterinary Hospital this summer.
2009 Boys Tennis
Name%School%Year
Singles
Bjorn Merinder%Andover%Jr.
Jason Pacino%North Reading%Sr.
Thomas Alaimo%Central Catholic%Soph.
Sam Eaton%Pinkerton%Jr.
*Alex Burbine%Londonderry%Soph.
Doubles
Nitin Mahesh%Andover%Jr.
Shane Huggins%Andover%Jr.
Dan Kish%Pinkerton%Jr.
Mike Soltys%Pinkerton%Jr.
* Eagle-Tribune MVP
Honorable Mention
Andover — Eric Heath, Sr.; Jeff Birenbaum, Jr.
Brooks — Max Lindauer, Soph.
Central Catholic — Joe Zucchi, Sr.; Chris Katsoulis, Sr.
Greater Lawrence — Christian Cano, Sr.
Haverhill — Fabian Schramm, Sr.; Ramie Jacobson, Sr.; Lennart Kuhrt, Jr.
Lawrence — Marieni Cornelio, Sr.
Londonderry — Tyler Palmieri, Sr.
Methuen — John Erickson, Jr.; Joe Perrone, Frosh.
North Andover — Alan Nguyen, Sr; Peter O'Neill, Sr.; Alex Shumway, Jr.
North Reading — Ray Zolman, Jr.
Pelham — Brad Shapiro, Sr.; Matt Smith, Frosh.; Jared Taylor, Frosh.
Pentucket — Ryan Swanson, Soph.
Pinkerton — Mark Mangini, Sr.
Salem — Joel Vastl, Sr.; Chris Correia, Sr.
Sanborn — Sean Santos, Sr.
Timberlane — Alex Mill, Sr.; Doug Robichaud, Jr.
Bjorn Merinder, Andover Junior, Singles
Repeat Eagle-Tribune All-Star. MVC co-MVP. Went 12-2 overall in first singles. Reached North Open quarterfinals. Co-captain this year, co-captain elect next year. Went 14-4 overall and 12-0 in MVC last year. Recently was ranked as high as eighth in New England USTA (U16). His two older sisters Jen (track, volleyball) and Meagan (volleyball) were Eagle-Tribune All-Stars.
Jason Pacino, North Reading Senior, Singles
CAL MVP. 16-0 in regular season at first singles. Has played first singles for the past three seasons. Only singles player to go undefeated in North Reading school history, according to coach Mark Bisognano. Said Bisognano, "It's a big thing to have a guaranteed point going into every match." Hopes to play at Roger Williams next year. His brother, Matt, plays at Stonehill.
Thomas Alaimo, Central Catholic Sophomore, Singles
All-MVC selection. 11-6 overall (9-5 MVC, 2-1 postseason) in first singles. Plays USTA and was ranked 34th in New England U16. Pushed Andover's Bjorn Merinder to three sets (6-3, 4-6, 3-6). Split matches with Chelmsford star Alex Mihalca. Student ambassador and member of Marist Youth. Lives in Andover. Goes by the nickname T. His sister, Emily, was former Central trackster.
Sam Eaton, Pinkerton Junior, Singles
Went 11-3 overall including a stellar 3-0 in postseason play out of second singles. Co-captain. Rebounded well after missing first three matches of the season with a broken arm. Defeated Londonderry's No. 2 Tyler Palmieri. Defeated previously-unbeaten Tucker Plimpton, 8-4, in Class L team championship setback to Exeter. Ranked in top 10 overall in class of 886.
Nitin Mahesh and Shane Huggins, Andover Doubles
Posted 9-1 regular season mark (5-1 MVC) and perfect 3-0 in tournament play out of first doubles. All-MVC selections. Undefeated in regular season at second doubles last year. Huggins won school's George Washington Award and is in top 15 percent in class. Mahesh has been playing tennis since the age of 4. Sister, Megan, was a former Andover tennis standout, as well.
Dan Kish and Mike Soltys, Pinkerton Doubles
Brilliant in clutch. Defeated Londonderry and Bishop Guertin in game-deciding matches to key 5-4 victories. Beat Exeter's No. 1 duo in Class L team title match. Went 11-2 in regular season and 2-0 in postseason. The much-improved Soltys rarely played last year. He registered 10 wins in singles. Kish, who was Eagle-Tribune MVP in golf, was 10-3 in singles play. Both are only juniors.
Alex Burbine, Londonderry Sophomore, singles
Sustained a broken cheekbone and a slight jaw fracture during an incident late in school year but still played at championship level after that. Followed up his 12-2 freshman campaign by going 14-0 in the regular season and 3-0 in the Class L team playoffs. His only loss came in the state open final to Con-Val's Conor Hyde. He and Tyler Palmieri had an unblemished 14-0 regular-season record as the Lancers' top doubles team.
Coach Bill Knee: "He really wants to reach the goal he set for himself as a freshman, which is to be crowned state champion. His real pie in the sky is he's enamored with idea of being part of a team that actually captures what he calls the 'triple crown' — him winning both singles and doubles titles, and the team winning it all."
"I was doing tennis activities as soon as I could walk, and my father put a racket in my hand when I was 3," said Burbine, who to this day hits two-handed from both sides because he used an adult racket from the start.
