Pat-Med Ousts Sachem East in Boys Tennis

After several close singles and doubles matches and with a place in the semifinals on the line, No.6 Patchogue-Medford defeated No.14 Sachem East, 5-2, in the quarterfinals of the Suffolk County boys tennis playoffs.

Coming off a win against Harborfields in the previous round, Patchogue-Medford was able to hold off Sachem, who upset third-seeded Westhampton in the last round, for their 14th consecutive win of the season, and their third against Sachem.

“It’s a great accomplishment to get to the semis,” Patchogue-Medford coach Steve Molinaro said. “I’m almost speechless. I’m very happy for the kids.”

The third doubles match between Patchogue’s  Muhammad Iqbal and Anthony Evangelista and Sachem's Nick Auffert and Eric Lopez was the deciding factor in which team would advance.

After splitting the first two sets and with the Raiders leading 3-2 in the overall matchup, Iqbal and Evangelista won the third set, 7-5, which sealed the victory and clinched their place in the last four.

“This year, they’ve really pushed each other along and once you start winning, it’s a snowball,” said Molinaro, about his team’s winning streak. “They just want to keep it going.”

The Raiders swept the doubles portion of the matchup, with Martin Carlino and Brandon Wagner defeating Gui Magzianov and Danny Schwartzman, 6-2, 7-6, to provide Patchogue-Medford with a crucial victory.

For Sachem, Jason and Dylan Quintana provided the only wins for their team, winning their singles matches, 6-4, 6-1 and 6-2, 6-2 respectively.

“Nobody in our league can even touch them,” said Sachem coach Stefano Massimo. “They are a cut above everybody else.”

Despite the stellar play of his two stars, the season will end earlier than planned for Sachem, as they weren’t able to take any doubles matches.

“Those kids played their hearts out,” said Massimo of his doubles teams.

The loss marked the end of Massimo’s coaching tenure at Sachem East, as he is leaving the position he has held since 2005 when the school opened.

“It’s an awesome way to end my coaching career. I’m so proud of these guys,” Massimo said.

Patchogue-Medford will face Ross in a Final Four matchup on Friday, May 27 at 4:30 p.m. The Quintana brothers will have an opportunity to play in the state doubles tournament starting next week.