Generals Sweep Lowell Catholic, 5-0, Advance to Face No. 1 Fenwick

The Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School girls' tennis team heads to the MIAA Div. 3 North Sectional Girls' Tennis Quarterfinals against Bishop Fenwick after defeating Lowell Catholic on Saturday.

On paper, ninth seeded Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School's 5-0 victory over the eighth seeded Crusaders of Lowell Catholic might have seemed like an upset, but don't tell that to Claudia Hawkes. For the second year girls' tennis coach, the Generals' victory on Saturday at Callery Park in Lowell was something she expected out of the team. "I think in reality the seedings were a little out of whack," said Hawkes, who believed that despite the seeding difference, her squad had been forged by stronger opponents in the Cape Ann League.  "We were ready for this match today, and the girls did very well. I'm excited we've gotten past the first round." With the year already an improvement over their 2010 first round defeat at the hands of …

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Boys' Tennis is Postseason-Bound, Girls' Team Gets Closer

With two weeks remaining in the season, the boys's tennis team has qualified for tournament and are looking for a league title, while the girls are strong at 7-4.

With two weeks left in the season, the Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School boys' tennis team has just one loss and has qualified for the post season. The girls' team is probably not too far off from what they, and those around the league, expected. The boys team sits at 9-1 overall, 7-1 in the Cape Ann League Small Division. While its 40-match league winning streak fell early - in its first match - as long as the Generals capture their final league contests it will be their fourth straight league title. For the girls, it has been a steady season with the team improving with each game, match and set. The squad is 7-4 overall after a 5-0 win over Newburyport on Monday and is on the verge of qualifying for the state tournament. “We are …

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Sports Monday

Boys Tennis Goes Out of League for Big Win

The powerful Marblehead boys' tennis team fell to perennial power Hamilton-Wenham to improve on the Generals one loss record.

There are many reasons why Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School boys' tennis has been so successful. One of them is challenging themselves whenever they get the chance. On Thursday at Pingree Park courts, they did just that when they faced top non-league competition in the form of Marblehead High School. The Magicians came in with a perfect 5-0 record and is standing atop the Northeastern League. That didn’t matter to the perennial power in the Cape Ann League as it pinned a 4-1 loss on the visitors. “(Marblehead) is a team we’ve scheduled throughout the years because we know they are always good,” said Generals coach Joe Maher. “There were good matches at all positions.” Maher, whose team improved to 5-1 with the lone loss coming to …

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Patch Facts

Five Things You Need to Know Today: May 4

An essential get-me-going daily morning column from Hamilton-Wenham Patch.

Today is Wednesday, May 4. Here are five things you need to know: 1. Weather: It’s looking like Wednesday will be cloudy with some rain, fog and possibly a thundershower. 2. Hometown Idol: The big show at the high school auditorium is on Wednedsay night – “Hometown Idol.” The show, put on by the Hamilton-Wenham Rotary Club, has double the number of performers this year, in it’s third year. The show starts at 7 p.m. 3. Early release: Because it’s Wednesday, it is early release days at the schools. Elementary schools get out at 12:45 p.m. and the high school and middle school get out at 1:30 p.m. 4. High School tennis: Both the girls’ and boys’ tennis teams had matches scheduled for Wednesday. But with the forecast for rain, the matches were…

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Girls' Tennis at .500 After Big Win and Tough Loss

The Generals girls' tennis team bounced back with win over Triton following a season-opening loss to Pentucket.

The Hamilton-Wenham girls tennis team could have easily suffered from the after-effects of a tough loss in its first week of matches. Following last Monday’s 4-1 loss to Pentucket - one of the top teams in the Cape Ann League - the Generals came back with a vengeance the following day, April 12, to shut out Triton, 5-0. “I think it was a confidence booster for the girls to beat Triton (after losing to Pentucket),” said coach Claudia Hawkes. “It was a good feeling for everyone to win. It was a good team win – everyone was high-fiving each other. No one was down.” With the No. 2 doubles team of Caroline Flores and Addie Loomis losing in three sets, 6-2, 2-6, 6-3, and top singles player Charlotte Horton just missing out, 7-6, 6-3, and …

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Boys' Tennis Bounces Back After Season-Opening Loss

The Generals boys' tennis team let one slip away against a tough Pentucket team to open the season, but won handily against Triton and Manchester-Essex.

If high school athletes can learn from a loss, then sometimes it is not such a bad thing. Even though the Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School boys' tennis team (2-1) dropped a heartbreaker in its season-opening match versus Pentucket, the squad righted the ship the very next day with a resounding victory over visiting Triton. The loss broke a 40 match Cape Ann League win streak for the Generals. Coach Joe Maher felt that in many of the team’s five matches in the 3-2 loss at Pentucket on April 11 his players weren’t taking the play to their opponents. Instead, the other team was deciding the style and the Generals were not able to take control. “You’ll see momentum swings from time to time (in matches),” said Maher. “In a couple of the …

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Sports Monday

VIDEO: Girls Tennis Team Hopes to Build on Last Year's Success

Second-year coach Claudia Hawkes is getting the high school girls' tennis squad ready for its opener.

While the well-known quote is “Success breeds success,” in the case of the Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School girls tennis team it is “Success breeds popularity.” Following a strong season in 2010 with first-year coach Claudia Hawkes, the Generals are looking for a repeat. And the team starts off that quest with one of the largest turnouts of players in recent years. “We actually had to make some cuts,” said Hawkes. “There was a little tension, but everyone wanted to work hard because they didn’t want to be cut.” Many of the players who have risen to the top already have put in the work in the off-season. Hawkes said she has noticed the players didn’t just pick up their racquet a few hours before practice. That will help with the …

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