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Growing up playing sports, athletes quickly begin to realize that nothing is guaranteed. There’s always a roadblock that gets in the way. When confronted with these situations, individuals or teams learn to adapt to get back into what their ultimate goal was, when they started their mission. But when it ends seasons, it becomes more of a life lesson.
The Winchester High girls tennis team (22-1, second seed) found that out, when it went up against Boston Latin (18-1, third seed) in a Division 1 state semifinal matchup at Newton South High School on June 10. They faced the Wolfpack just last year in the Elite 8, and were able to beat the Dual County League squad, 3-2.
The Wolfpack were the top seed, while Winchester was eighth. This year, however, the roles were practically reverse, including the final score.
But it certainly doesn’t diminish what the Winchester girls have accomplished as Middlesex League champions, and Coach Greg Lowder knows it.
“I don’t think anything changed from last year to this year,” he said after the semifinal match. “Last year, we brought our A-game, and won. This year, we also brought our A-game, and came up a match short. It’s just the nature of competition. Boston Latin is (always) a tough matchup for any team, and (as a result) you win some and you lose some.”
First singles player Daryana Skobeleva defeated state individual champion Vanessa Vu in straight sets, 7-5, 6-4 to get the semis off to a good start. Andrea Bilic, however, lost to Halina Nguyen in second singles, 6-1, 6-0. Olivia Thompson then fell to Keira Shao in third singles, 6-2, 6-2.
The first doubles team of Esha Bhalla and Kaiyal Kumaran dropped a 6-0, 6-4 decision to Lillian Nguyen and Giselle Ngo. But Mia Lock and Cate Sheehan recorded the team’s other win on this day after dominating Maya Nguyen and Harkin Le in second doubles, 6-1, 6-0.
This was also Lowder’s last match as the Winchester coach after a 10-year run. However, he will still coach at the Winchester Indoor Lawn Tennis Center as a tennis pro.
“I have had nine (great) years as the team’s coach, but it would have been 10 if it wasn’t for the COVID year,” he said. “Over the years, I’ve coached 75 players, and they were all the best group of kids that any high school coach could ever have.”
Among that group of 75 was definitely this year’s five graduating seniors, and they were all “amazing,” according to Lowder.
Their future is bright on and off the tennis courts. Skobeleva (Case Western) and Bilic (Connecticut College) are scheduled to continue to play tennis on the next level in college, while Sheehan (Wake Forest), Lock (Colby) and Laura Jiang (Cornell) are all heading to college to continue their educational pursuits.
Since 2017, Lowder’s teams have amassed a record of 163-21, and in 2021 won the Division 2 state title.
“We always have had amazing seniors, and this year was no different,” said Lowder. “They just care so much about each other, and it goes far beyond tennis. I’m lucky to have been a part of all of this.”
Joe McConnell is a longtime, award-winning sports editor for numerous North Shore publications. He began covering Winchester sports for the News in November 2024 and is currently its Sports Editor. He can be reached at editor@winchesternews.org.
