Grace Campanella, Kennebunk junior: For the second year in a row, Campanella won the MPA state singles tournament, this time dropping a single game in five matches. She defeated No. 2 Elene Imnaishvili of Bangor 6-1, 6-0 in the final. As a freshman, Campanella reached the semifinals before losing to eventual champ Lana Mavor of Yarmouth.
Caitlin Cass, Lincoln Academy sophomore: After reaching the singles semifinals last spring, Cass earned the third seed and reached the quarterfinals this year. She also went 15-1 in team competition and avenged her only regular-season loss (against Ellie Hodgkin of Erskine Academy) to help the Eagles win their second straight Class B state title.
Ellie Hodgkin, Erskine Academy senior: Seeded eighth in the singles tournament, Hodgkin reached the Round of 16 before falling to No. 9 Blair Hollyday. Hodgkin went 15-1 in team play and clinched a 3-2 Class B North championship match against Waterville to give the South China school its first regional title.
Blair Hollyday, Cape Elizabeth sophomore: As the ninth seed, Hollyday edged No. 8 Ellie Hodgkin 7-6 (5), 6-3 to reach the quarterfinals of the state singles tournament before falling to the eventual champ, Grace Campanella. In team play, Hollyday went 12-0 at No. 1 singles to help the Capers reach the Class B South semifinals.
Elene Imnaishvili, Bangor junior: An exchange student from the Republic of Georgia, Imnaishvili earned the second seed in the singles tournament and advanced to the final, where she became the only player to win a game off Grace Campanella. In team play, Imnaishvili was 14-0 and didn’t lose a set.
Regitze Jacobsen, Mt. Desert Island sophomore: An exchange student from Denmark, Jacobsen won all her matches in team competition. As the fifth seed, she advanced to the semifinal round of the singles tournament before falling 6-0, 6-0 to the eventual champion, Grace Campanella.
Anastasia Kapothanasis, Cheverus senior: A two-time All-State selection, the seventh-seeded Kapothanasis rallied to a three-set victory over No. 10 Julia Svor of Lewiston to reach the quarterfinals of the singles tournament. In team competition she went 12-2. She plans to continue her career at Saint Anselm in New Hampshire.
Morgan Warner, Waynflete sophomore: After playing lacrosse last spring, Warner switched to tennis and went 14-0 in team competition to lead the fifth-seeded Flyers to the Class C South final. Seeded sixth in singles, she beat No. 3 Caitlin Cass in a three-set quarterfinal before falling 6-4, 6-4 to No. 2 Elene Imnaishvili in the semis.
COACH OF THE YEAR
Anita Murphy, Lewiston: After a heartbreaking 3-2 loss to Falmouth (for the third time in four years) in the 2018 Class A state final, Murphy led the Blue Devils to a 16-0 season, capped by a 5-0 victory over Scarborough in the state final. In 41 years of coaching, Murphy has guided Lewiston to 13 Class A titles and eight runner-up finishes.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
