Two of the top players in the Mountain Valley Conference lead a pair of deep teams that should contend for the conference title.

Elaine Theriault of Winthrop and Cecile Thibodeau of Madison both return with hopes of leading their teams to greater success and making an impression at the individual tournament.

Also this spring, the Waterville girls return five of seven starters from a team that finished 12-0 in the regular season.

At Winthrop, Theriault went 11-1 and played in the Round of 40 state singles tournament.

“She has a good, steady ground game, and we are working on bringing her up to the net a little bit and getting a little variety in her game,” Winthrop coach Lou Gingras said.

Theriault, who lost in the first round of the Round of 40 tournament, has loftier goals this spring.

“I really want to make it past the top 40 and go farther into the tournament,” she said.

Winthrop’s No. 2 singles player, junior Kelsey Ouellette, also went 11-1 in the regular season. She is joined by junior Kelly Miles in the singles lineup for the Ramblers. Molly Lindsey and Lauren McHatten will play No. 1 doubles for Winthrop.

Meanwhile, Madison is led by Thibodeau, who was a first-team MVC selection last spring.

“Last year was a building year so we are looking forward to this year,” Thibodeau said.

Theriault figures Thibodeau will be her toughest opponent this spring.

“It was very tough the two times we played last season,” said Theriault, who won a pair of regular season matches against Thibodeau last season.

Madison went 5-7 a year ago and returns the majority of its roster. Seniors Terri Hayden and Nicole Benner will join Thibodeau in the singles lineup.

Last season, Hall-Dale went 9-3, but lost seven players from that team. Freshman Wendy Goldman has been solid in the preseason and could challenge for a singles spot, along with Dakota Mitchell and Margaret Cousins.

“Even though we were 9-3 last year, we finished fifth in the MVC. That’s a tough conference,” Hall-Dale coach Guy Cousins said. “Winthrop will be one of the top teams in the area. They’ve got everybody back.”

Monmouth lost its top three singles players to graduation. Kelsey Mellen, Paige Leonas and Amanda Bouchard will likely occupy the top three singles spots for the Mustangs.

In Class A, Messalonskee returns eight players who saw time with the varsity team last season. The biggest question facing the Eagles is who will play No. 3 singles. Juniors Audrey Knowlton and Erin Chapin are battling for the job.

The Cony girls have 31 athletes out this spring, led by junior Blair Burney. Freshman Nicole Kirschner should contribute immediately at No. 2 or No. 3 singles.

In Class B, Waterville went unbeaten in the regular season before losing 3-2 in the Eastern B semifinals to Presque Isle in Waterville. Coach Donna Nale thinks that loss will help the team this spring.

“I think something missing last year was that sometimes we got tight in a nervous situation,” Nale said. “I think we are better at that this year.”

Waterville returns five of its seven starters, led by senior Katherine Batten and junior Jen Nale.

Erskine Academy returns all three of its singles players from last season in Courtney Gee, Beth Preston and Michelle Pinkham. The Eagles have also seen an increase in numbers and will field a JV team this spring.

Maranacook, meanwhile, missed the playoffs for the first time in Dianna Erb’s seven season with the program. Senior Heather Black will play No. 1 singles for a Black Bears team that should benefit from a rebuilding year.

At Winslow, the Black Raiders have 26 girls on the team, which is in its second season as a varsity squad. Fifteen of those players are new to the sport.