East Hampton boys tennis edges Eastport-South Manor in 5-4 thriller

One court decided it all. With East Hampton High School boys tennis lined along the fences on one of the sunniest, mildest days of the spring, Joseph Martinez-Garces and Lucas Centalonza closed out a 6-2 third set at third doubles on April 14 to lift East Hampton past Eastport-South Manor, 5-4.

Martinez-Garces, a senior, said he "lived for the cheers" as teammates crowded close to watch the final points. Centalonza, also a senior, said the pair has played together since sophomore year and leaned on the same habit that has carried them through close matches before, staying positive even when they fell behind. When the overall match was still undecided, that calm became the difference between a split and a statement win.

East Hampton did not need only one hero. Henry Cooper and Chase Bohnsack both rolled to 6-0, 6-0 singles wins, a pair of score lines that showed how firmly the Bonackers controlled the middle of the lineup. Cooper called freshman Bohnsack "the best freshman I’ve ever seen, ever," a compliment that underscored how quickly the younger player has become part of the team’s core. Griffin Beckmann, another senior captain, said even the players who lost were still cheering and helping create a "really positive" and "really warm" atmosphere.

The victory also gave East Hampton another jolt of momentum after a 6-1 home-opening win over Riverhead on March 23, when Beckmann, Bohnsack, Cooper and Harry Schultz all won their matches. The spring schedule moved fast, too: East Hampton’s lineup had already listed Eastport-South Manor for April 8 before the teams met again on April 14, putting the rivalry squarely in the early-season league picture.

The result carries real weight for a program that has long been viewed as one of Suffolk County’s stronger boys tennis teams. A 5-4 finish leaves no room for comfort, but it also tells East Hampton something important about itself: when the match tightens to one final court, the Bonackers have the singles firepower, the doubles poise and the bench energy to finish the job.