East Providence won a battle with Scituate, but the war for the Division III girls tennis crown is hardly over
EAST PROVIDENCE — There were plenty of big story lines heading into Tuesday’s match between undefeated Scituate and undefeated East Providence.
But this matchup didn’t advance them — which only made it more intriguing.
Last year, the Townies ended the Spartans’ season in the semifinals, so this revenge game and battle of the unbeatens was a chance to find out who really was the early favorite in Division III girls tennis. Instead, Scituate played without its No. 1 player and not enough players to fill out a lineup. East Providence took advantage, showing its strength with wins at Nos. 2 and 3 singles and sweeping the doubles in a 5-2 victory in a match that proved to be beneficial for both teams.
“We knew that we had to put in real effort and hard work,” East Providence No. 2 singles player Lena Shanty said. “With all the talent that we have on this team, we really pulled it together. We know that even though [Scituate] is a hard team, we can always count on our teammates.”
“I was telling the girls earlier that this match is sort of a trial run for what’s to come,” said Scituate’s Ava Pilderian, who bumped up to No. 1 singles and won on Tuesday. “[Tuesday's match] just gives us a look into the future and what we’ll run into.”
With how the teams are playing this fall, that’s certainly a possibility. Here’s why.
Confidence is key for East Providence
Historically, winning isn’t something East Providence has done in girls tennis. Despite the school’s size and courts all over the city, the Townies have found themselves bouncing between Division II and III for quite some time.
Slade Sharma hopes to change that. He was an assistant when they dropped from II to III in 2020 and took over the program as interim coach in 2021. Taking over as head coach last fall, the Townies went 13-1 in Division III before falling to Bay View in the championship match.
That created excitement around the program and Sharma was forced to make cuts with more than 40 players out for the team. East Providence is slowly becoming a program and the confidence gained from last season has carried over into the success so far in 2023.
“Everyone last year, we were working our hardest and just anticipating we could do so well,” senior Isabella Hurley said. “This year, there’s extra weight to it. We need to do this; we need to get this back. We need to take this.”
“Every person on this team works really hard for their wins. That’s the main aspect of East Providence — we always work hard for our wins,” Shanty said. “It’s not handed to us. We learn everything and we take it point by point.”
The Townies were ready for anything Tuesday
East Providence was well aware what was at stake going up against Scituate. It’s early in the season, but the winner would have a leg up for a top two playoff spot and that could be the difference between getting to Slater Park or going home early.
What it wasn’t aware of was the Spartans were going to play without their No. 1 player. Finding that information out during pregame introductions and that Scituate didn’t have enough players for a No. 3 doubles team didn’t change the Townies' approach to the match. They knew better.
“We really came into this match expecting a lot. It was going to be a tough one,” Hurley said. “It was a tough one, but we came out and the amount we’ve been able to do so far, especially in a match like this, has been insane.”
Hurley and partner Madison Luu took care of business at No. 1 doubles with a 6-0, 6-1 win and the No. 2 team of Tianna Brierly and Maggie Robinson quickly followed suite to put East Providence up, 3-0.
Scituate’s Ava Pilderian came away with a win at No. 1, but East Providence No. 2 Megha Tenneti added the clinching point in a 6-4,6-2 win that was soon followed by Shanty’s 6-2, 7-5 victory at No. 2.
“Last year really taught me not to give up,” said Shanty, who fought hard to prevent her match from going to a third set. “Even though that match was a tough one and we came up a little short [vs. Bay View], we still have it in us. We still have that motivation to keep going.”
Scituate’s not going anywhere
The 5-2 loss doesn’t look great on paper, but when you break it dow,n the Spartans left East Providence feeling pretty good about where they stand in the race for the Division III title.
Scituate’s entire singles lineup had to play up a spot. Pilderian found her win at No. 1 and Milana Belanger and Izzy Breese hardly made life easy in their matches at No. 2 and No. 3.
Elysia Forunati, who normally plays No. 1 doubles, was the big winner for Scituate, grinding out a three-set victory at No. 4.
While Scituate’s doubles teams ran into trouble as the four players weren’t playing with their normal partners and the No. 3 team had to forfeit because usual No. 3 Keyliah Casasola didn’t have a partner to take the court with.
“We looked nervous [Tuesday] because everyone was in a new position,” Pilderian said. “You could see that on the court. We’re coming in with more confidence the next time because we have the ability to win.”
Scituate was hoping to be back at full strength for its match Wednesday against Exeter-West Greenwich. It needs to build some momentum with matches against Cranston East and Providence Country Day in October.
What happened Tuesday won’t help in the standings but it will help the Spartans show how tough they are and what to expect at playoff time.
“This match is sort of a trial run for what’s to come,” Pilderian said. “[Tuesday's match] just gives us a look into the future and what we’ll run into. It’ll make us work a little harder in practice and train a little differently.”
East Providence will continue to grow
The Townies aren’t the defending champs, but their 5-0 start to the season has them in conversation as to who will win Division III at Slater Park.
“It’s definitely more pressure, but it’s a lot more where we feel like its more motivation,” Hurley said. “Other teams know that we are going to do good and we can do good, but we also know we can do this and take this. That’s not something in past year’s we have always had.”
East Providence doesn’t have one particular strength. This isn’t a team that’s built to win on the back of two-star singles players or any spot in the lineup that’s a lock in every match.
The Townies hope to win this season much like it did Tuesday — by showing up ready to work hard, ready to outwork the opponent and know that their teammates are doing the same.
“What brings this team together is everybody bringing something different. Everyone has a different background in tennis,” Hurley said. “To just bring that all together makes the perfect mix of what we need to bring success.”
That may be a title. East Providence is certainly thinking it, even if that’s not quite the focus right now.
“We can absolutely look big picture, but during this time, I think we’re taking it match by match,” Shanty said. “We don’t want to get too hopeful, but we know we have it in us to make it to the championship.”
EAST PROVIDENCE 5, SCITUATE 2
SINGLES: Ava Pilderian, S, def. Hope Moran, 6-1, 6-1; Lena Shanty, EP, def. Milana Belanger, S, 6-2, 7-5; Megha Tenneti, EP, def. Izzy Breese, 6-4, 6-2; Elysia Fortunati, S, def. Caroline Haggery, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.
DOUBLES: Isabella Hurley-Madison Luu, EP, def. Bailey Chapralis-Lila Stiennette, S, 6-0, 6-1; Tianna Brierly-Maggie Robinson def. Norah Clarke-Anna Floor, S, 6-0, 6-3; Ava Domingues-Rylee Thurber, EP, win by forfeit.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: East Providence Scituate Division III Girls Tennis ProJo
