ME Boys Tennis Wins State Crown for Second Year in a Row

“All three singles matches were over, and everyone was watching first doubles and second doubles play at the stadium court at MIT,” explains Bilsbury.  “We knew we had to take one of these doubles matches.  Lynnfield knew they had to take both, and both went to three sets.””

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: the Manchester Essex boys tennis team earned a top-three seed in the MIAA Div. 4 Tournament with a memorable regular season, blazed through the tournament bracket and defeated Cape Ann League rival (and perennial high school tennis superpower) Lynnfield in the state championship game.

This statement is as true today -- after the Hornets defeated the Pioneers for the second year in a row in the state championship game by a 3-2 score on June 15, 2025, at MIT’s DuPont Tennis Courts -- as it was right about this time in 2024.  Last year, Manchester Essex went 19-4 combined between postseason and regular season play, earned the three seed in the tourney and beat Lynnfield.

As unforgettable as last spring was, the 2025 season might end up being even more memorable.  This was a senior-laden, championship-winning team bringing back crucial pieces a year later, still hungry to do it all again before every starter but one graduated this spring and the current championship window closed for this group.  The numbers seem to bear this out: The Hornets won every game this season with the exception of the regular season finale against St. John’s Prep, the team that won the Div. 1 state title over the weekend, posting an incredible 22-1 combined record and earning the top seed in the bracket. 

Until facing Lynnfield in the final, the Hornets pretty much cruised through the playoff bracket defeating Westport, Bromfield and Cohasset by 5-0 scores, and Hamilton-Wenham by a 4-1 score in the Sweet 16. This group was clearly on a mission, and they accomplished it on Sunday.

“This year was amazing,” says Manchester Essex boys tennis coach Robert Bilsbury.  “Last year, my second singles, third singles and second doubles won [in the title game], and they graduated.  It had to be all new kids who stepped up this year to get the job done this season.”

In another stunning similarity to last season, the Hornets once again scored points at second doubles and second and third singles to win the title.  Sophomore Alex Montaresi won his final match of the season 6-3, 6-2, at second singles, capping off a year in which he suffered only one individual loss all spring.  Charlie Langendorf won 6-0, 6-2, at third singles, leaving the doubles teams with the pressure of securing the victory on both sides.

“All three singles matches were over, and everyone was watching first doubles and second doubles play at the stadium court at MIT,” explains Bilsbury.  “We knew we had to take one of these doubles matches.  Lynnfield knew they had to take both, and both went to three sets.”

Manchester Essex secured the winning point at second doubles thanks to the efforts of Charlie Rubens and Shay Engleheart, winning by a 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 score.

“That was an absolute battle,” Bilsbury says of the second doubles match.  “The Lynnfield kids played really well.  We were down in the first set and then came back to win.”

Jack Lawler and Finn Birkeland kept things close at first doubles despite not earning the point, falling by a 4-6, 6-3, 4-6 score.  Jack Cummins also played well even though he couldn’t pick up the point at first singles, the most challenging spot in the lineup in tennis.

“He has been the engine of this entire run,” explains Bilsbury.  “Throughout the regular season he has earned huge points for us, including the win over Marblehead.  His passion and his dedication to the sport allows him to play one for us -- if you don’t have that, you don’t go anywhere.  It’s been an amazing four years having him in the program.  Under him being our number one last year, he beat every single player in the CAL.  He’s also the kid who convinced Shay Engleheart to even play tennis this spring, and he had this huge match for us.”

The only real downside in all of this is that most of the pieces that make this engine run graduated this spring, which means the Hornets will bring back Montaresi as the centerpiece in 2026, surrounded by new faces in new places. “It was amazing, what a great group of boys,” says Bilsbury.  “It was a big year for us, everyone is a senior except Alex at second singles.  Next year, it’s time to rebuild things back up.”