Echuca defeated Rochester 1 in the Campaspe Tennis Association division one grand final on Saturday, lifting the Dolly Christie Memorial Shield and pulling off the rare feat of an undefeated season.
Echuca enjoyed a comfortable victory, disposing of Rochester 1 by 39 games to secure its first title since 2019-20.
Echuca’s Todd Charnas was surprised at the one-sidedness of the match but was thrilled to salute in division one again.
“It was a pretty solid win which was a bit of a surprise,” Charnas said.
“We started well, and we were pretty comprehensive from there.
“We won five sets in a row early on and going into the middle we only dropped one set.
“Everyone played well — Shane Coatsworth was very good, and the ladies were all pretty even.”
Jaycob Dingwall struck the first blow of the grand final for Rochester, conquering Charnas 6-3 in the opening set.
An Echuca blitz in the next five sets effectively bundled Rochester out of the contest.
Nick Bush got Echuca on the board, 6-4, over Nash Hocking, while Charnas and Stephen Hope took the first doubles set.
Bush and Coatsworth saluted in the next doubles before Hope teamed up with Coatsworth for another emphatic win.
Vicki Bavich and Marcia Spiers took the first ladies’ doubles, followed by Bavich and the ever-dangerous Roxanne Dicketts.
Celine Bush partnered Spiers for yet another successful set, with the margin continuing to climb.
Dingwall and Rachael Major pulled back a set for Rochester in the mixed doubles, but it would be their only other successful set for the day.
Echuca rolled through to secure the 11-96 to 2-57 win and the Dolly Christie shield.
It was also Echuca’s 12th straight victory of the season, with no blemishes in the losses column.
“It was great to go through (unbeaten), it was just one of those things where we didn’t want to lose the last game,” Charnas said.
“It was certainly good to get it done.
“We were evenly spread. We had Roxanne Dicketts who is one of the best ladies in the competition, which is certainly handy.
“We don’t drop away often so I would say that’s where the strength lies.”
In the division two grand final, Colbinabbin 1 kept Echuca 4 at arm’s length to seal the pennant.
Garet Stobaus struck first in the match for Echuca, but it was Jude Ryan (6-1) in the second set to get Colbo on the board that set the tone for the encounter.
Stobaus and Peter Gronow struck back but Colbinabbin then went on a three-set streak through the pairings of Jude Ryan-Ned Morgan, Morgan-Elijah Wallace, and Alexandra Ingram-Olivia McEvoy.
Mardi Ryan and Trish Wilkinson made it four in a row, until Jodi Jones and Abbey Stobaus combined to break Colbinabbin’s momentum.
Another doubles run by Colbo — 6-1, 6-1, 6-2 — effectively brought the contest to a close despite Echuca taking out the final two sets.
Colbinabbin 1 is division two premiers after its 8-62 to 5-46 win.
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