Tennis Teams to Play for State Titles

The is now one match away from a fifth consecutive state championship after beating Marblehead 4-1 in the MIAA Division 2 North sectional final.

The Sachems (21-0) ended the suspense early after getting quick points from second singles and both doubles matches Saturday at the Woburn Racquet Club.

Alex Criss won 6-0, 6-1 at second singles, while Katy and Karen McKeough won 6-2, 6-1 at first doubles and Maddy Mangan and Sarah Wheeler won 6-0, 6-1 at second doubles.

"I would say the doubles teams in particular both played some of their best matches of the year, which was great to see in such a big match, and then Alex did really well and was the first one off the court," coach Paul Sughrue said.

Chloe Georgaklis pulled out a tough match at third singles, winning 6-3, 4-6, 7-5. Abby Shewalter fell 6-4, 6-2 at first singles.

The team played the sectional final the day after winning its semifinal over

Next up is South Division champion Hopkinton (21-2), whose only losses were to Medfield. The state final will be Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. at Lexington.

"We're going to have our hands full but my feeling is if the girls play like they're capable of playing then we're a really tough team," Sughrue said.

Sughrue expects the team's 113-match winning streak and string of state titles should give Winchester an edge.

"I think one thing that will help us is these girls have been through a lot of matches like this," Sughrue said. "I think the whole environment won't be as overwhelming as it would be for a team that hasn't been there."

Boys Tennis Dominates North Andover

The Winchester boys tennis team's sectional semifinal was filled with three-set matches and the emotion of facing Burlington, a league rival.

There was no such suspense in the MIAA Division 2 North sectional final on Saturday. The Sachems won every set and defeated North Andover 5-0 after weather moved the match indoors to the Woburn Racquet Club.

Winchester (19-2) will now face Division 2 South champion Sharon (19-0) for the state title Tuesday at 4 p.m. at Lexington.

Coach Tobe Okoye credited the Burlington match, which Winchester pulled out 3-2, with helping the Sachems come out strong against North Andover.

"That was a jolt we needed to get our focus back and really see how much we wanted it," Okoye said.

All five matches started at the same time against North Andover, and Jake Criss won 6-0, 6-1 at third singles to give Winchester the first point. He was quickly followed by the first doubles team of Erik Meiler and Alex Saich, who won 6-2, 6-0.

The next to finish was Christian Boulanger, who won his first singles match 6-1, 6-1. Matt Roll and Mike Lauretano continued the momentum, winning their second doubles match 6-2, 6-2.

Finally, Ben Davis made it a clean sweep by winning 6-3, 6-3 at second singles.

"We went on the court and handled business the entire time," Okoye said.

Now Winchester is ready to start another streak of state titles. The Sachems lost the state final to Hingham last year, ending a streak of four straight state championships. Sharon beat Hingham 4-1 in the sectional final this season.