Riverhead
Riverhead Expects Major Improvement In 2024
by Mike Merolle Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’s season preview series. Riverhead 2, Longwood 1 Mark Gajowski threw a complete game 2 hitter. He brought a no hitter into the 7th inning. 0 earned runs, 6 K’s, 2 walks. Senior Luke Pilon went 2-3 at the plate with a key RBI. pic.twitter.com/ek1ThaNPXc — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 27, 2023 The 2023 season did not go as planned for Riverhead. The team finished with a record of 1-19. It was head coach Kevin Kerman’s first season taking over the role but he sees the positives in a season of negatives. “In an extremely competitive league, we had a disappointing season last year. We are going to use that season as motivation to push this group forward to improve. We have to work extr...
Up Next Powered by State Farm Ken Kortright Agency: Matt Zambriski
It is no secret that players on Long Island have long been overlooked. More specifically, players from the east end have been overlooked as they have to not only deal with the cold weather, but the issue that some college coaches and pro scouts don’t often make the trek out east. Some players have broken through recently, specifically Kyle McGowin of Pierson and Chris Pike of Southampton, but the challenge remains. Travel organizations like the East Coast Lumberjacks are helping to eliminate that challenge as they travel around and play in the most competitive tournaments in the country during the summer. Riverhead RHP/INF Matt Zambrinski is one of those players that is hoping to break through. The big righty was called up to varsity as an 8th grader. His coach, Kevin Kerman, had the...
Where Are They Now Powered by the BK7 Brand: Matt Crohan
During the summer of 2012, Matt Crohan had a routine that was unique for a 16-year-old. As one of the top prep left-handed pitchers in the country, everyone wanted to see him play against the best competition and that happened to be in the south. “I used to fly to Florida on Fridays and wait to hear where I was pitching the next day,” said Crohan. “I would pitch a couple innings, then I would hang out for the next couple days until it was time to go home,” he added. That was during a time in his life in which his name became increasingly more synonymous with the best amateurs in the nation. On one particular weekend, he recalled flying to Fort Myers, FL to pitch in a Perfect Game tournament in which he threw four shutout innings with nine strikeouts, allowing just one hit and one walk. His...
Riverhead Looks to Take the Next Step with First Year Head Coach
by Andy Smith The Riverhead Blue Waves finished the 2022 season with an 8-10 record and missed the playoffs by just one game. Entering his first season as the head skipper, Kevin Kerman looks to carry on the legacy of Rob Maccone. Kerman explained, “I’d like to start by thanking Rob Maccone for his almost 20 years of being at the helm of Riverhead Baseball.” Kerman first began his coaching career as a varsity assistant with Floyd. Maccone then brought Kerman into the middle school catching staff in March of 2020, when Kerman was hired as a physical education teacher at Riverhead. The new head coach may be familiar to fans of Dowling College. The infielder was a member of the team from 2009-2013 under Tom Caputo. During this time, Dowling captured two Conference Championships and two Ea...
Suffolk County Leagues Not Yet Finalized
I was very surprised to hear that the Suffolk County leagues are not yet official, despite the chart being posted on Section XI’s website. Nassau County’s is posted and we are only a couple months away from the season at this point. So what’s the hold up? I was told that Riverhead’s status is the hold up. If you remember earlier in the school year, they were intending to eliminate sports for the 2020-21 year in order to save the district $960,000. They reversed course and reinstated sports. The issue was that Section XI had progressed to move on without them for this year and made the 2021 leagues. Now that they’re back, a decision will need to be made in regards to where to place them. Their enrollment would typically fall in either League 2 or 3. Once a deci...
Where Are They Now: Matt Crohan
During the summer of 2012, Matt Crohan had a routine that was unique for a 16-year-old. As one of the top prep left-handed pitchers in the country, everyone wanted to see him play against the best competition and that happened to be in the south. “I used to fly to Florida on Fridays and wait to hear where I was pitching the next day,” said Crohan. “I would pitch a couple innings, then I would hang out for the next couple days until it was time to go home,” he added. That was during a time in his life in which his name became increasingly more synonymous with the best amateurs in the nation. On one particular weekend, he recalled flying to Fort Myers, FL to pitch in a Perfect Game tournament in which he threw four shutout innings with nine strikeouts, allowing just o...
