LONGMEADOW -- The road to a state championship is never easy for any team. That was true for the Bromfield girls tennis team as their road to Friday's final was filled with land mines. The Lady Trojans had to dispatch perennial power Notre Dame Academy just to get a date in the state semifinals on Monday.

Upon punching their ticket and finding themselves one match away from a shot at the Division III state championship, Bromfield found another powerhouse in their way. Lenox has long been known as one of the best girls' tennis teams in the state, having made it to the state finals last season. But on this day, the Lady Trojans were too much, using a sweep in doubles and wins in the number one and three singles matches to claim a 4-1 victory.

"On Saturday and today, we have played our best tennis of the year," said Bromfield coach Chris Holmes. "Lenox is an outstanding team and to have the success we had today just shows how far the girls have come as this season has progressed."

Bromfield wasted little time digging the Lady Millionaires a big hole, winning the first two singles matches of the day. In the number one singles, Casey Magrath continued her outstanding post-season with a 6-1, 6-1, victory over Emily Ellis. Arpitha Hayes took the number three singles match with ease, dispatching Alex Trousilek 6-1, 6-0.

"Casey has not lost a set in the post-season," said Holmes. "She has really stepped up and played her best when we needed it the most. Arpitha

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did a great job of playing under control and not making mistakes. It was big for us to grab that early lead and put the pressure on them."

In the second singles match, Lenox claimed their lone win of the day as Kelly Babich defeated Meaghan Katz 6-2, 6-1. The match took a toll on Katz who had to be helped from the court due to a battle with dehydration.

The Lady Trojans picked up the necessary third win in number one doubles. Rhett Nuenighoff and Lindsay Kerr breezed through the first set 6-1 over Nicole Babich and Rachel Cogswell, before battling to a hard fought 7-5 second-set victory.

In the day's final match, Julie Gormley and Kristen Noyes handled Alex Adams and Cami Smachetti 6-4 and 6-2 to provide the final 4-1 margin. The win improved Bromfield to 19-3 on the season and set up a showdown with Bedford in the state final.

"You have to give all the credit in the world to the girls," said Holmes. "We knew the road would be tough, but everyone has turned their games up a notch. To get to a state final is a great accomplishment, and I could not be prouder of this team."