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WATERVILLE — Eli Sidhu earned another state tennis doubles title on Saturday afternoon, but it didn’t come easy.

Instead, the Falmouth junior did everything he could, from hard serves and forehand returns, to screaming “Come on,” and “Let’s go” between points, pushing his partner, junior Luke Kusel, to meet his level of energy.

“We were just trying to keep the energy up,” Sidhu said. “It’s just a game, but if you keep the energy up, it’s going to go in your favor. Even if you lose points, you’re going to get the majority of them back.”

The strategy worked as the duo beat Faustino Arango and Jose Vela in three sets (6-4, 3-6, 6-1) to capture the boys title at the doubles tennis state tournament on Saturday afternoon at Colby College.

It’s the second straight doubles title for Sidhu, who won with Charlie Wolack as his partner last season.

“It’s good, we have a good team every year,” Sidhu said. “The doubles (teams) are always good, so I think we’ll always be in contention for this achievement.”

In girls doubles, the team of Rana Abess and Olive Van Hoewyk of Camden Hills won the title over Gwen Long and Carley Iannetta of Falmouth by a score of 7-6(2), 6-2.

“I’m really excited,” said Van Hoewyk, a sophomore. “We were quarterfinalists last year. It’s really exciting to win with Rana being a senior. It’ll probably be my last time in the doubles tournament, so ending it with a win, with Rana, feels really great.”

Added Abess: “We’re just really focused on having fun when we play. Obviously, (the strategy) is, ‘Let’s just take one point at a time.’ I think we did a lot of reflecting on how we did last year, and how we improved a lot. It was really cool to see that growth.”

It was no easy path for the Camden duo, either. Abess and Van Hoewyk had to come back and beat Payton Thibodeau and Hadley Foster of Gorham in three sets (1-6, 6-2, 6-3) to reach the finals. That earned the right to play against Long — who won the girls doubles title with Gracyn Mick last season — and Iannetta.

“They worked hard and are playing great,” said Camden Hills coach Lana Arau. “(Van Hoewyk and Abess) are very supportive of each other, they stay connected, and they keep each other close. They strategize together and make adjustments when they need to.”

Sidhu and Kusel fended off a hard charge from Arango and Vela, who picked up a three-set victory Falmouth’s No. 2 doubles team, Nick Roediger and Dante Iannetta (6-2, 2-6, 7-5) to reach the finals.

“We were just trying to keep each other happy, positive and calm (between sets),” Kusel said.

Falmouth now has back-to-back boys doubles titles since the Maine Principals’ Association brought the tournament back last year. The MPA hadn’t sponsored the tournament since 1980.

“If feels good to (win again) and keep the tradition going,” Kusel.

Added Sidhu: “It’s just a tradition of winning (at Falmouth), and it’s good to keep that tradition going.