Holy Cross boys tennis put up a fight on Friday afternoon at Woodland Regional High School in Beacon Falls, but Wolcott was just too much.
The Eagles beat the Crusaders 7-2 in the NVL Tournament team final and collected their third straight championship.
Wolcott claimed singles victories at No. 1, No. 2, No. 4 and No. 6. A sweep of the three doubles matches cinched it for the Eagles.
Wolcott has won 58 straight in the NVL, with the last loss coming in 2013.
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| Wolcott’s Matt Mastropietro won over Holy Cross’ Chris Frappier at No. 2 singles. |
The No. 2 singles match was the first to finish on the day, and it went to Wolcott’s Matt Mastropietro, 8-3 over Chris Frappier. Frappier tried to battle his way back in, but Mastropietro was able to put him away.
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| Holy Cross’ Liam Palilla claimed victory over Wolcott’s Jay Caggiano at No. 3 singles. |
Holy Cross evened the team score at 1-1 with a victory at No. 3 singles from Liam Palilla, 8-4 over Jay Caggiano. Palilla, a tall player, used a strong serve to challenge Caggiano.
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| Wolcott’s Matt Spina picked up a big win over Holy Cross’ Andrew Dzinski at No. 1 singles. |
A big match ended right after at No. 1 singles. Holy Cross’ Andrew Dzinski, the top player in the NVL, had one loss entering Friday. The loss came to Wolcott’s Matt Spina.
On Friday, Spina got Dzinski for the second time. The No. 1’s went back and forth with each other in a strong matchup. It was a test of wills and strong volleys, and Dzinski closed to within 7-6. Dzinski threatened to even it up, but Spina was able to pull out the victory and put Wolcott ahead 2-1 overall.
Alex Hale won 8-1 for the Eagles over Haydon Frisbie at No. 4 singles. At No. 5 singles, Holy Cross’ Dan Huang defeated Wolcott’s Ryan Collins by an 8-5 margin. No. 6 singles went Jackson Yost, 8-2 over Dillon Collins.
According to Joe Palladino of the Waterbury Republican-American, Wolcott clinched the team title when the the No. 3 doubles team of Hale and Yost posted an 8-1 victory over the combination of Frisbie and Huang.
At No. 1 doubles, Spina and Mastropietro knocked off Dzinski and Frappier, 8-1. Caggino and Ryan Collins beat Palilla and Dillon Collins 9-8 (7-2).
The individual and doubles state tournaments are up next. Wolcott plays in Class M while Holy Cross heads to Class S.
