FORT KENT, Maine — The five-hour drive south to the tournament site is really just a small part of the road Ryan Chasse and other northern Aroostook County tennis players must take to compete in the annual state high school singles championships.
Unlike rivals from more populous parts of Maine who catch a comparative break on the length and depth of winter and have greater access to indoor training facilities, The County kids simply make the most of the opportunities Mother Nature does present each spring — eventually.
“Unfortunately up here we don’t have any indoor facilities or courts, and it snows basically up until our first practice, so when it’s not tennis season, I don’t get to play tennis,” said Chasse, a senior at Fort Kent Community High School.
Such external inequities haven’t prevented Chasse from establishing himself as one of the better players statewide.
After winning two matches at last year’s state tournament and amassing an undefeated record so far this spring, Chasse enters play this weekend seeded seventh in the 48-player boys field — the highest seed for any qualifier boy or girl from north of Lewiston, the host for this year’s states.
Lewiston High School will stage the boys and girls Rounds of 48 and 32 on Friday and the Round of 16 and quarterfinals on Saturday before the scene shifts across town to Bates College on Monday for the semifinals and championship matches.
Ninth-ranked Paul Branch of John Bapst of Bangor is the only other boys seed from north of Lewiston, while among the girls seeds No. 10 Gabrielle Marquis, a sophomore from Caribou, is the only one to share a geographic tennis challenge similar to Chasse.
Chasse, who played second singles for Fort Kent as a freshman and first singles the last three years, has not lost a regular-season match during his high school career, according to Warriors coach Matt Anderson.
“The first time he really committed to the sport was in ninth grade,” said Anderson, “and the crazy thing is when he came into high school for the first time he was torn between baseball and tennis. Thankfully tennis won him over, and he’s had quite a successful career with it.”
Chasse, a right-hander who uses a two-handed backhand, debuted on the state singles scene last spring as an unseeded qualifier and scored straight-sets victories over Chris Laverdiere of Saint Dominic of Auburn and Thomas Brent of Gorham — this year’s No. 12 seed — to reach the Round of 16.
“I really went in with no expectations, I didn’t really know what I was going to see,” said Chasse. “I was able to practice with my coach to prepare for the players I was going to see downstate, and I really just played my game and was able to win a few matches. It was a good experience.”
Chasse’s tournament run ended the next day in a 6-0, 6-0 loss to No. 1 Nick Mathieu of Mt. Ararat of Topsham, who went on to become the state runner-up for the second straight year.
“I think that match just offered him the perspective that there’s always that next level of play, there’s always someone better, and there’s always the opportunity to get better as a player,” said Anderson.
“Having pretty much won convincingly throughout his high school career and then to step into a match and have those tables turned on him, I think that was healthy for him,” he said.
Chasse used that reality check as the impetus to work on his game during somewhat limited off-season opportunities. His summer was spent playing tennis and golf and the first two sports seasons of the school year devoted to soccer and basketball. He was a Northern Maine State Team honoree in soccer last fall and a McDonald’s East-West Senior All-Star in basketball.
“I’ve been working a lot on my serve,” said Chasse, who has lost just six games this spring while compiling a 14-0 record. “My serve was really a weak point last year. I switched rackets, and my overall game is better, my forehand and backhand are better and now I can place the ball better.
“The difference from last year to this year is now I know what to expect. I know the level the players can play at downstate, and I’m preparing myself now, practicing three or four hours every day trying to get ready for that level,” he said.
As a seeded player, Chasse drew a bye directly into the Round of 32 and is scheduled to face the winner of a Round of 48 clash between Alec Cyr of Caribou and Drake Janes of Mount Desert Island of Bar Harbor at 6 p.m. Friday.
“I’m going to go in looking to win my first-round match and if I get to the Round of 16 I definitely want to make some noise there,” said Chasse, who plans to study business at Thomas College in Waterville this fall. “Once you get to the Round of 16, the competition is so tough that there will definitely be some good matches, but hopefully I’ll go far.”
