By Benito Vila

The toughest task for the middle school baseball and softball coaches was making teams, the seventh grade class having an abundance of players in each sport and the eighth grade class too few. In the end, each sport resolved their “numbers” dilemmas differently.

Baseball played a combined seventh and eighth grade schedule with two evenly drafted teams and softball fielded an eighth grade team and a seventh grade team, a few girls playing “up” to fill out the older team’s roster. And both solutions worked out well if final records are any indication of success, the baseball teams going 12-0 and 9-1 and the softball teams finishing 9-0 and 5-6.

Solid Play

Special education teacher Marc Schimmer coached the eighth grade Lady Whalers. In re-capping the season, he said, “From my vantage point in the dugout, I thought the team had a very good season. Last spring as seventh graders they were winless and this year we were very competitive in all our games and completed a 5-6 season, two games being wiped out by rain.”

 “We were a team that always looked forward to game days, and with able coaching assistance from John Romeo, who volunteered his time and effort, we worked hard from day one to improve both our individual and team skills, defensively and offensively.”

Coach Schimmer cited wins over Mattituck (12-10), Westhampton (10-8) and Hampton Bays (18-6) as highlights of the season. Seventh grader Bridget Canavan pitched most often with eighth grader MariCarmen Chavez filling in in relief. Platooning at catcher and second base were Liz Grigonis and Emma Romeo, Coach Schimmer noting “their strong offense and their able leadership.”

Completing a “solid” infield were starters Lindsey Cox (1B), Julia Schiavoni (SS) and Kelly Koehne (3B).  Also on the roster were Pierson’s Alissa Clermont, Carli Fischer and Sydnee McKie-Senior and Bridgehampton’s Tatyana Dawson and Jennah Hochstedler.

High school physical education instructor Shannon Judge led the seventh grade team to a 9-0 mark, but credited that success to her girls, saying, “What made the difference was their unbelievable work ethic. They were one of the best teams I’ve ever coached.”

Coach Judge found she had tremendous pitching depth, Ashley Nill, Katherine Matthers, Annie Osiecki, May Evjen and India Hemby all getting work inside the circle. Lily Kunzeman and Sol Varela emerged as able catchers.

The team’s starting infield featured Paige DePetris (1B), May Evjen (2B), Kasey Gilbride (SS) and Annie Osiecki (3B). Backing up those players in the outfield or off the bench were Diana Rozzi, Eilis Sheil, Nell Dobbs, Marley Holder, Kristian Washburn and Katy Koehne.

Who’s Better?

Starting the season with just seven eighth graders, an inexperienced group coming from Bridgehampton and a pile of seventh graders, there were doubts on how the middle school season would work out. A pair of workouts supervised by physical education instructors Jonathan Tortorella and Fred Marienfeld preceded a “draft” to create two even teams.

Given the final records, 12-0 and 9-1, it seems that both coaches were able to share the talent as well as inspire smart play. An end-of-season “Red versus Black” game may have provided some motivation to the boys and the coaches, but rain soaked up all the open dates and no one will ever know which team was “better”.

Coach Marienfeld’s undefeated Red team played a full complement of games against East Hampton, Springs, Hampton Bays, Southold, Greenport, East Moriches and Montauk. Weather interfered with two of Coach Tortorella’s games and a lousy Saturday morning in East Hampton gave the Black team its only loss.

The Red team saw Forrest Loesch, Aaron Schiavoni and Ian Barrett become reliable starters on the mound with Schiavoni and Liam Doyle donning the gear behind the plate. Loesch, Schiavoni and Jackson Marienfeld proved to be the bats the boys looked to for big hits.

The Black team saw Jack Bori earn the majority of the catching duties with Colman Vila, Jake Bennett, Caleb Atkinson-Barnes, Kyle Sturmann and Tim Markowski sharing the pitching. Sturmann proved to be a dependable shortstop on defense while Bennett and Atkinson-Barnes brought home the most runs on offense

Popularity: 4% [?]

By Benito Vila

Every baseball and softball player is familiar with the basics of the game, getting three outs, swinging the bat and running the bases. But growing up, aspects of what happens on the field change every year; the ball comes quicker, the bases seem a bit closer and the competition gets more and more keen.

Every season the Pierson JV teams take on a new character with players moving up from middle school and some going up to varsity. This year both squads also had new coaches, Kathy Amicucci coming back to coach the softball ladies and Henry Meyer coming in to lead the baseball boys.

Both teams had winning records, softball going 11-4 and baseball 14-4, with undermanned squads, softball taking the field only 10 deep at times and baseball doing the same.

 

The Young Ladies

Coach Amicucci summed up her season saying, “We started out, as the varsity team did, with a smaller than desired turnout. [Varsity coach] Melissa Edwards and I worked with the talent we had and it worked out nicely. We had games I thought we could have won that we didn’t but we also beat a couple teams I wasn’t sure we would.”

In describing individual players, Coach Amicucci acknowledged, “I was happy to see the talent of players like Sami James, Catherine Musnicki and Nina Hemby. I was happier to see all the girls work hard and improve up until the very last game. Sami ended the season with a .460 batting average. Chelsea [Freleng] ended with an impressive .516. Lindsey [Duran] had 101 strikeouts.”

 “But with all the numbers, the thing that stands out the most is the team’s willingness to work. Keriann Fitzpatrick played shortstop, even though she preferred second base because I needed her to. And she always worked hard. Gemma [Gardella] improved every day to become a player that I trusted out on the field. And she hit the ball and advanced runners at almost every at bat.”

Looking ahead to next year, Coach Amicucci likes what she’s seen at the middle school level, suggesting, “I hope we can work something out with the middle schoolers and their late winter basketball season so we can bring up some up next year. The varsity lost a lot of great players and I just hope I did a decent job turning my JV players into effective varsity talent.”

 

The Future Whalers

Looking back this week, Coach Meyer said he liked how much his club, “wanted to learn the game. We improved every day, from the first day to the end, in the fundamentals we were teaching.”

 “We won a lot of games by doing the things we were capable of; we didn’t have hitters who were driving balls into the gaps. We had to bunt and manufacture runs and it worked when people began to understand their roles in what we were doing.”

Hoping to see his players continue to succeed, Coach Meyer added, “To improve further, our players have to work a lot on conditioning and arm strength, starting now and going through the winter, so that they can make the plays they need to make.

Jake Weingartner led the team at the plate, hitting at a .491 clip with 14 runs batted in. Sean Hartnett finished second in batting, at .400, and first in runs scored with 25, just ahead of Paul Dorego (24) and Weingartner (23).

The team’s individual on-base percentages were gaudy, Brendan Hemby topping that category at .652. Hartnett (.618), Sean Romeo (.608), Jeremy Pepper (.600), Weingartner (.593), Emet Evgen (.581), Donald Doran (.568) and Hunter Leyser (.550) also found their way on base more times than not.

Dorego was behind the plate for most of the season, catching a starting rotation of Weingartner, Doran and Leyser. Sean Romeo, Frank Romeo and Harnett all threw ably in spot starts and in relief.

 

Popularity: 4% [?]

By Benito Vila

All too often the tempo and tenor of a game can turn on a single play. So it was Monday in the Long Island Class C championship, a sinking bases-loaded fly ball eluding the glove of Pierson’s normally reliable center fielder, two runs scoring.

That miscue set mayhem into motion, a dropped flip at second, an elusive high pop on the right side and a throwing error on a steal allowing Nassau Class C champion Oyster Bay to roll up a 6-0 lead in their first at-bat. Senior pitcher Joe Mascali managed to finally work his way out of the first, getting a grounder to third and a strikeout to end the inning.

Though a Mascali double and a Gavin Kudlak groundout scored a run for Pierson in the top of the second, it was not enough to get the Suffolk C champs back in the game. As the innings played out, the Whalers were unable to spoil Baymen pitcher Jake Robinson’s rhythm nor were they able to find theirs, heading home with a rotten 11-1 loss.

The sure-handed play of the Oyster Bay infield offset the Whalers’ swings, shortstop Matt Capozzo scooping up everything hit his way with first baseman Jared Frydman ably handling each infield throw and three tricky grounders. That solid defensive combination helped Robinson settle in and toss an assortment of breaking pitches in sending the Whalers away with just three walks and one hit.

 

Bright Spots

It’s not that the afternoon was without some bright spots for the Whalers: Mascali, Mahoney and Riva making their plays in the outfield; Kyle McGowin coming into pitch three innings of one-run relief; Tyler Gilbride and Ryan Miller keeping the left side of the infield tight; and catcher Casey Crowley nabbing an out at third with a pump fake to first on a sacrifice bunt.

The loss closes out a 15-10 season for the Whalers, who earned their county title in taking two of three from defending Suffolk champion Port Jefferson. The Class C championship is the third one for Pierson baseball in the last 10 years and will soon be the only “ball” to grace a banner in the gym for a boys’ team this school year.

The season’s other highlights include a doubleheader sweep of eventual league champion Southold, a breakthrough outing on the mound from Crowley after two one-sided losses to Center Moriches and errorless defense in a stretch of mid-season games.

The team came to rely on the pitching of Mascali, McGowin and Crowley, the trio running up a collective 13-7 mark. Mascali was 6-2, McGowin 5-4 and Crowley 2-1. Eddie Schall recorded the other two wins in relief and Brandon Kruel took three hard-luck losses.

Crowley (.315) and McGowin (.313) were the team’s top two hitters, and set the pace in most offensive categories. McGowin led in home runs and runs batted in (2 HRs and 21 RBIs); Crowley contributing one long ball and knocking ten home. Crowley scored 26 runs, Miller following with 16 and McGowin next with 15. Crowley scrambled for 18 steals, Miller and McGowin swiping 12 apiece.

 

Closing Thoughts

Though the bats were quiet in the last two tournament games, the growing confidence of underclassmen Dane Riva, Gavin Kudlak, Joe Dowling, T.J. Arreguin, Gilbride, Schall and Kruel leave skipper Sean Crowley an experienced core to work with next year. The work put in by Mahoney, George Hoglund, Jeffrey Schimmer and Jim Fusco will make the 2010 squad even stronger, as will the addition of JV players Jake Weingartner, Frank Romeo and Paul Dorego, who were called up for the post-season.

In wrapping up his season, Coach Crowley said, “No matter how you define success, we had a championship season. We had the team concept and senior leadership working all season long at the varsity level and we had program-wide success at the JV and middle school levels. It’s good to know that school age boys want to be a part of Whaler baseball.”

Popularity: 3% [?]

By Benito Vila

Nearly 300 sports fans gathered in the high school gym last night for the annual Pierson athletic awards. This year it was a bittersweet ending to the athletic season, with the recent resignation of first-year athletic director Bill Madsen and the untimely ending of the varsity softball and baseball seasons in tournament play.

Despite all that there was still much to celebrate, especially the return of Donnelly McGovern to the boys’ varsity soccer program and the 14-2 record-setting season turned in by the varsity field hockey team. Five teams competed for county titles, two coming home champions: girls’ varsity cross-country and boys’ varsity baseball. Both those teams will forever be able to come into the gym and see their achievement on the championship banners.

With the podium set in the middle of a long table of coaches, each Pierson varsity and JV team was called up in turn, each player receiving their letters and plaques. Madsen, who has accepted the position of athletic director at Eastport/South Manor, a Class A school with a more sophisticated and comprehensive program, made the most of his first and only night as master of ceremonies.

At the end of evening, Madsen included Pierson principal Jeff Nichols and district superintendent Dr. John Gratto in the proceedings, Nichols introducing the Sportspeople of the Year and Gratto, the Outstanding Athletes of the Year.

 

Individual Awards Winners

In presenting the female Sportsperson of the Year award to Megan Pintauro, Nichols said, “This person always has the team’s best interest in mind. She is always the first to lend a helping hand to anyone in need. Besides her athleticism she has a sincere and genuinely warm personality and amazing sense of humor. She is a stand out leader on the field hockey field through her abilities as well as an exceptional vocal coach on the softball field. She received All-County Honorable Mention in Field Hockey and received this year’s coach’s award. Her presence makes a significant difference to her team as she adds a unique spark to all she participates in.”

In describing the male Sportsperson of the Year, Ryan Miller, Nichols said, “[He’s] a prime example of how an athlete should conduct themselves. He always shows a tremendous amount of respect toward players, coaches and officials. He has a personality that makes the game fun for everyone and showed a real enjoyment for any sport he has played. This student has participated in golf, basketball and baseball for the past four years, earning most improved player, coach’s award and All-League recognition. He is a true gentlemen and a pleasure to coach.”

Gratto referred to the Outstanding Male Athlete of the Year, Joe Mascali, as “an outstanding athlete in every sense of the word. He brought tremendous effort and competitiveness to our soccer and baseball teams this year. He did an exceptional job pitching for our baseball team where he was named All-League. His speed, determination and intensity have been a remarkable asset to our soccer team this year. He works hard to get better, gives his all on every play and his energy is contagious.”

In recognizing Katie Osiecki, the Outstanding Female Athlete of the Year, Gratto said, “She is truly a gifted athlete. She leads and motivates through her dedication and work ethic. She is a physically strong player helping her to win All-Conference honors in soccer. She also was an asset to our girls’ varsity softball and basketball teams. She has participated in varsity basketball for three years earning captain, rookie of the year, most valuable player and All-League. This past softball season, she also earned All-League recognition. She was an outstanding vocal captain and stood out in everyway. She is the epitome of a student-athlete.”

 

Award Winners, by team

Boys’ Varsity Cross Country: Most Valuable Player, Kai Leo; Coach’s Award, Kyle Fletcher. Girls’ Varsity Girls Cross Country: MVP, Keriann Fitzpatrick; Most Improved Player, Amelia Skerys; Coach’s Award, Rafaela Gurtler.

Girls’ Varsity Soccer: MVP, Natalie Abbene; MIP, Annie Osiecki; Coach’s Award, Katie Osiecki.

Girls’ Varsity Volleyball: MVP, Brianna Hand; MIP, Cindy Alvarez; Coach’s Award, Danielle Schiavoni. Girls’ JV Volleyball: MVP, Madeline Puckett; MIP, Chelsea Freleng; Coach’s Award, Dominique Clark.

Boys’ Varsity Golf: Co-MVPs, Gabe Denon and Dillon Decker; MIP, Harrison Bayrami; Coach’s Award, Ryan Miller. Boys’ JV Golf: MVP, Christian Deger; MIP, Chloe Laundrie; Coach’s Award, Adam Heller.

Varsity Field Hockey: MVP, Aly Bori; MIP, Alexa Lantiere; Coach’s Award, Megan Pintauro. JV Field Hockey: No individual awards

Boys’ Varsity Soccer: MVP, Andrew Mitchell; MIP, Mark Mahoney;

Coach’s Award, Gavin Kudlak. Boys’ JV Soccer: MVP, Diego Gamboa-Ochoa; MIP, Nico McMahon; Coach’s Award, Oscar Reyes.

Boys’ Varsity Basketball: MVP, Joe Dowling; MIP, Ryan Miller; Coach’s Award, Casey Crowley. Boys’ JV Basketball: MVP, Sam Miller; MIP, Mike Heller; Coach’s Award, Sean Hartnett

Girls’ Varsity Basketball: MVP, Katie Osiecki; MIP, Arielle Chase; Coach’s Award, Gabrielle Arondel. Girls’ JV Basketball: MVP, Emily Hinz; MIP – Sam Kamper; Coach’s Award, Rachel Saidman.

Cheerleading: MIP, Skyler Willingham; Coach’s Award, Amelia Skerys.

Boys’ Varsity Baseball: MVP, Casey Crowley; MIP, Ryan Miller; Coach’s Award, Joe Dowling. Boys’ JV Baseball: MVP, Jake Weingartner; MIP, Brendan Hemby; Coach’s Award, Sean Hartnett

Girls’ Varsity Softball: MVP, Samanthe Federico; MIP, Abby Gawronski; Coach’s Award: Katie Osiecki. Girls’ JV Softball: MVP, Samantha James; MIP, Gemma Gardella; Coach’s Award, Nina Hemby. 

Popularity: 3% [?]

By Benito Vila

Southampton hurler Chris Pike fired a no-hitter on Friday in the Suffolk County small schools tournament, the Class B champion Mariners ousting the Class C champion Pierson Whalers, 12-0.

The loss eliminated Pierson from the county tournament, but not the state tournament, the Whalers matching up with Nassau Class C champion Oyster Bay on Monday at Fireman Field in Valley Stream at 4 p.m.

Oyster Bay, the reigning Long Island Class B champion, is currently 12-9 overall, after going 10-7 in Nassau Conference BC, most often playing larger schools. The New York State Sportswriters Association ranked the Baymen twentieth in Class C last week and had the Whalers at number ten before Friday’s loss.

Pierson is now 15-9 on the season, having gone 12-6 in league, 1-2 in non-league and sweeping defending champion Port Jefferson 2-0 in the county’s best-of-three Class C series.

The winner of Monday’s contest plays the next day against either the Westchester or Rockland County C champion. The winner of Tuesday’s game goes on to Binghamton for the state semi-finals next weekend.

 

Pike, Pike and More Pike

Pike’s pitching was masterful Friday, setting down the first six Whalers in order, his teammates building an early 6-0 lead. An error in the top of the third on a Brandon Kruel line drive to left, gave the Whalers some hope, but a ground ball started a second-to-short-to-first double play, stopping Pierson long before it could get anything going.

That error proved to be the only flaw on an otherwise perfect afternoon for the Class B champs and their pitcher, Pike facing only 21 Whalers, the minimum number of batters possible, in notching his no-hitter. Pike also recorded the final putout of the game, covering first as first baseman Alex Antilety’s stop stole away Tyler Gilbride’s bid to break up the no-hitter.

In all, Pike struck out 11 Whalers, with Casey Crowley and Dane Riva being the only Pierson players to ring out line drives, both of those balls being caught on the run in the outfield. It was Pike’s second successful outing against Pierson this year, the junior tossing a one-hit shutout with 12 strikeouts in non-league play in late March. On the season, Pike has gone 7-1 in leading Southampton to a 19-7 mark.

On Tuesday, the Mariners made their way to Islip and came home the Suffolk small schools runner-up, falling behind the Buccaneers 6-0 early on but battling back to a 6-4 final. Southampton plays Nassau B champ Wheatley at 4 p.m. in Hauppauge Monday.

 

Sights Set

After the loss last Friday Pierson coach Sean Crowley said, “Pike had good stuff and everything lined up for them. They made nearly every play and when they missed one, they turned two [a double play after an error] on the very next batter. We had a couple of seeing-eye singles get through in the first; that gave them a 2-0 lead. Then a three-run homer put us in hole 6-0 and we tightened up. That helped them relax while we struggled.”

“We have our sights set on Oyster Bay now. A win next Monday and we keep playing. We win two and we go to Binghamton. And a four-game win streak gets us the state title. Putting that together is where our focus is.”

 

 

Popularity: 8% [?]

By Benito Vila

2-0 Pierson, bottom of the fifth, Lady Whaler freshman pitcher Melanie Stafford very much in control in the county Class C title game, rival Port Jefferson struggling to put anything together: a beautiful afternoon full of promise, optimism and wonderment for the Pierson varsity softball team.

But then things quickly went sour last Saturday, an error creating an opportunity for the Lady Royals in that home half-inning, the visitors seeing their hosts hit and run roughshod in scoring six times. That Port Jeff rally proved to be too much for Pierson to overcome, the final score going into the record books 7-2.

The outcome ended the athletic careers of six Lady Whalers who all contributed to the success Pierson enjoyed in making the county tournament and playing for the county title. Leaving the program for other playing fields are Samanthe Federico, Brianna Hand, Katie Osiecki, Megan Pinaturo, Danielle Schiavoni and Alicia Tagliasacchi.

 

First-Year Reflections

On Tuesday, Lady Whaler coach Melissa Edwards had gained some perspective in talking about what happened Saturday, saying, “We had an error and then it just snowballed. They put the ball in play again and again and we couldn’t field it. It turned out to be one bad inning but it was enough to do us in.”

When asked what stayed with her the most about the game and the season, Coach Edwards said, “[The team] never gave up. That’s what impressed me the most. It’s still weird that it’s over, that we don’t have practice. In [being a first-year coach] I learned a lot about Pierson athletics and what I need to work on with the kids coming back and the kids coming up.”

 “I’m optimistic. I like what I see in the middle school and the JV. We have some girls playing travel ball this summer and once the academic year starts up again we’ll have clinics built around specific skills.”

Looking to build the program for the long-term, Coach Edwards also is considering clinics tailored to the current Little Leaguers but has not yet set plans for that age group, but added, “That will come.”

 

2009 Honorees

The Lady Whalers finished up 2009 8-8 in conference play, 0-2 out of conference and 1-2 in the championship series to complete a 9-12 season overall. Coach Edwards will celebrate the season with her fellow coaches at the county’s annual softball banquet later in the month. Pierson players Sam Federico, Katie Osiecki, Melanie Stafford and Kaci Koehne will be joining her, the county’s coaches recognizing them for post-season honors.

Popularity: 4% [?]

 

Pierson alumni, and current teacher, Sean Kelly was just 14-years-old when his family moved to Sag Harbor from a rural, landlocked town in Ireland. Although, his new home and old stomping grounds were separated by thousands of miles, Kelly says both shared a tight-knit community. This close sensibility allowed Kelly to flourish at Pierson High School and he was soon playing on sports teams and garnering a stellar academic record. Kelly graduated in 1999 and went on to earn a Bachelors degree at Harvard University, but soon returned to Pierson to teach social studies.

Above: Government and Economics Teacher Dr. Jon Baer. 

 When Kelly became a member of the high school faculty, he joined dozens of former alumni who currently work for the district as educators, administrators, custodians, kitchen help and school board members. Of the nearly 40 alumni who work for the district in some capacity, many of them say they were drawn to Sag Harbor because of the close-knit school community.

Above: Social Studies Teacher Sean Kelly, then and now. 

 “I feel very blessed to work for the school. I always knew that I wanted to invest my life in Sag Harbor because of the location and the community,” said Kate Berkoski, a fellow 1999 Pierson graduate and current fifth grade teacher. “Every teacher I had from kindergarten through sixth grade is still working at the school.”

 “The teachers really try to do something more than educate. They try to give students an experience,” continued Berkoski, referencing programs such as the annual fifth grade Wax Museum and the recent Ellis Island project where children mimicked the journey of turn of the century immigrants.

 Dr. Jon Baer, Pierson’s government and economics teacher and a member of the class of 1963, fondly recalls how his English teacher, Helen Muller, inspired him to pursue a degree in education. Dr. Baer, however, pursued this career later in life after spending years in the army, earning masters degrees in education and political science, a doctorate in political science and working for the local radio station WLNG until 2000.

 “It was kind of my dream to teach English because of my teachers from Pierson,” contended Dr. Baer. “The school is very cozy and friendly.”

 Although Dr. Baer fostered close relationships with a few select teachers, he says on the whole, teacher and student dynamics were more formal in the past, which is noticeably different today.

 “[Now] teachers can joke around with their students. There isn’t that barrier and I think it is that sense of community [between teacher and student] that leads to less drugs and violence in our schools,” opined Dr. Baer.

 Closer ties between the faculty and students is one change of many, adds Dr.  Baer, compared to his experiences at Pierson. Academically, Dr. Baer says the school focused on business and career training electives in the 1960s. During this time, Pierson offered classes in accounting, bookkeeping and typing. Current Sag Harbor Elementary School teacher Bethany Deyermond, who graduated in 1971, remembers learning to balance her checkbook in one class.

 According to Dr. Baer, vocational oriented courses, such as electrical shop classes, were mainly dominated by male students, while woman traditionally attended the home economics and typing classes.  

 

 When Terri Federico graduated from Pierson in 1983, the school was just beginning to offer special education courses and the school provided students with little help when applying to colleges.

 “They now make it easier to apply,” said Federico, who added that when she was in school Advanced Placement programs weren’t offered.

 “Many more kids go to college now than before,” said Dr. Baer.

 In addition to better preparedness for college, Kelly added that the school now offers a more diverse curriculum and elective course offerings.

 “I look at what the kids have available to them now with a certain amount of envy. They have all of these amazing extra curriculars, facilities, science labs and the library. There is such a variety of classes. There is an outlet for any individual skill — like sports, art, drama. Each individual can find a way to show their talent. I wish I had had that diverse experience, though my experience was amazing,” opined Kelly.

 Kelly says the small class size also gives the school the feel of a private institution, with which Frank Atkinson-Barnes, a social studies teacher who taught at several boarding and private schools before starting at Pierson, agreed. Several of the teachers reported that the number of Pierson students has remained relatively stable throughout the years.

 Although each alumni turned teacher fondly recalls their Pierson experiences, few expected to end up teaching in the district where they grew up. Atkinson-Barnes says he applied to schools very far from Pierson and attended college in Virginia.

 “When I left to go away to college, I don’t think I ever thought I would come back to Sag Harbor,” remembered Deyermond, though life had other plans for her. After attending college in Pennsylvania and Vermont, Deyermond transferred to Southampton College to finish out her studies and to be closer to her future husband Ed Deyermond, now a village trustee and Southampton Town Assessor.

 Others, like Federico and Berkoski, always had an inkling that their paths would lead them back to the village. Federico didn’t stray far and completed the bulk of her studies at C.W. Post and Southampton College. Although, Berkoski attended college in North Carolina, she ended up returning home shortly after graduation.

 Though teaching in the Sag Harbor school district was an unexpected turn of events for several Pierson graduates, many of them say they feel lucky to work for the school.

 “Pierson educates its students to a high enough level that the school wants them to come back,” said Kelly. “For those of us who came back, Pierson treated us so well and our experiences were so amazing that we wanted to come back.”

 

Popularity: 10% [?]

By Benito Vila

It was truly a tribal experience in Mashashimuet Park yesterday evening, over 100 voices cheering, Pierson varsity softball down 5-4 in the bottom of the fifth in game two of the Class C championship series, Lady Whalers at second and third, one out, needing a run to tie and a win to take the title.

That’s as good as it got for the home side, Port Jefferson Lady Royal pitcher Michiko McGivney setting down two Pierson batters on strikes and keeping her team in the lead. McGivney then put the game out of reach in the top of the seventh, a bases-loaded, two-out single to left putting the Lady Royals up 8-4 and coolly quieting the Lady Whaler faithful.

In the bottom of the seventh, Sam Federico started up the cheers again, smacking a single to right, taking second when Katie Osiecki also socked a one-out single to right. But then the promising rally came undone, a quick shortstop-to-second-to-first double play killing any chance of a Pierson comeback.

The best-of-three Class C series now even, one game apiece, the Lady Whalers travel to Port Jefferson tomorrow for game three of the series. Pierson took game one there Saturday, 5-2, Federico and Kaci Koehne sparking the attack and pitcher Melanie Stafford keeping the defense sharp in throwing a complete game five-hitter.

The winner of tomorrow’s series finale moves into the state tournament and the “Super Regional” semi-finals at Mitchell Field in Hempstead on Tuesday, June 9. That semi-final match-up pits the Suffolk Class C Champ against the Nassau champ at 1 p.m., the winner there playing a regional final at 4 p.m.

After yesterday’s loss, Lady Whaler coach Melissa Edwards said she would focus on hitting and fielding work in practice today. Looking ahead to tomorrow’s do-or-die contest, she added, “We will continue to work on building our confidence at the plate and our reactions to the ball in the field. Bloop hits that fell in and quiet bats let the game get away. We go there knowing we hit first. We know we need to attack early and we plan to. And when we get in the field, we have to move a whole lot better to keep them off base.”

Saturday’s Win

In describing the game one win, Coach Edwards reported, “We got on the bus ready to win, and the whole bus ride there I felt something different with this team. They were all upbeat and smiles. We got to the field, did our warm-ups and got ourselves ready to go.”

“We jumped up early, scoring three in the first inning. Natalie [Abbene] led off with a single that got us fired up, then Kaci and Sam singled. With Sam’s single scoring Natalie. Katie came up and hit a single to score Sam and Kaci.”

The Pierson girls put together a two-run rally in the fourth, Coach Edwards recounting, “Nat led off with a single, Kara [Gengarelly] singled, and then Sam Fed hit a bomb to left, a triple, that scored both Nat and Kara.” On the day, Federico went three-for-four, with Koehne, Pintauro, Abbene and Osiecki all going two-for-four.

Coach Edwards said afterwards, “It was a great day for our bats. Nat sparked the game right from the beginning by beating out a bunt, Sam’s triple in the fourth was a monster, and Melanie’s pitching was great. She hit her spots and our defense was there behind her all game with great plays by Sam, Katie and Nat in particular.”

 

Popularity: 5% [?]

By Benito Vila

 

Once the game has a hold on you, it’s hard to let go. That was evident Sunday when 14 alumni and “friends of Pierson baseball” gathered for the 10^th annual Robert Vishno, Jr. Hardball Classic, a scholarship fundraiser hosted by Pierson coach Sean Crowley.

The turnout necessitated some creative team-making but everyone involved was willing to fill in when needed to make the fielding team whole and no one minded the extra at-bats. The game came down to the afternoon’s final at-bat, Mike Semkus stroking a single to right to bring in the winning run on his 22^nd birthday.

Paul Dorego ripped a pair of balls into the right center field alley that both incredibly enough found leather, one bringing in a run. Rob Cleary, Paul Federico, Gregg Schiavoni, Evan Harse, Sean Crowley and Semkus all saw time on the mound with Jim Kinnier, Harse and Federico donning the gear behind the plate. Jared Schiavoni had two hits, was hit once and played an able shortstop for the second-place team.

 

Labrozzi 5-for-8

 

Missing from this weekend’s festivities was 2005 Pierson graduate and former Whaler baseball standout Mike Labrozzi, who was participating in the NCAA Division III World Series Championship in Wisconsin with his college team, the Skyline Conference champion Farmingdale State Rams.

The Rams ran into trouble on the field in their opener Friday, surrendering a six-run eighth to Shenandoah University (VA) in a 12-2 loss that saw the Rams make three errors. Labrozzi started and played a clean game at first base, going two-for-four at the plate with two singles.

The double-elimination format sent Labrozzi and his teammates home on Saturday, two unearned runs giving Chapman College (CA) a 4-2 victory. Putting in yet another errorless game at first, Labrozzi was three-for-four at the plate, stealing a base, scoring once, doubling and singling twice and recording an assist in the field.

 

Sag Harbor Whalers 2009 debut

 

Labrozzi meets a new set of teammates this week as other collegiate players come into town to play in the second-year Hampton Collegiate Baseball League, the eastern-most division of the 43-year old Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League. Teams in Mattituck, Westhampton, Riverhead, Southampton, Old Westbury and Sag Harbor make up the Hampton League (which is also known as the Kaiser Division of the ACBL).

The Whalers are scheduled to make their debut in Southampton next Thursday at 5 p.m., taking the field against the Breakers on the Southampton High School field. After a Friday game against the Aviators in Westhampton, the Whalers host the Riverhead Tomcats in Mashashimuet Park on Sunday, June 7 for a doubleheader. The first game is at 2 p.m. and the second at 5 p.m. There is no admission fee but donations may be requested to help cover team and league expenses.

The Whaler players are from collegiate programs at Rhode Island, Rutgers, Hofstra, Harvard, Seton Hall, Stanford, Fairfield and Lafayette. Their league rivals will have players from UNLV, UNC Wilmington, UConn, Notre Dame, Princeton, Iona, Elon, C.W. Post and North Dakota State. All the teams will be using wood bats. The players will be putting up a temporary fence in the outfield when they play in the park.

The league is still looking for a few rooms to house players for the summer. If interested in helping, call Tom Gleeson at 516-361-0998.

 

Popularity: 4% [?]

Ladies open Class C series on the road Saturday

 

By Benito Vila

 

Getting up early on weekends is not something high school girls are known for but in any well-lived life there are always exceptions. The Pierson varsity softball team is poised to set aside its collective and individual preferences this Saturday morning, the Lady Whalers making their way to Port Jefferson to open a best-of-three series for the county Class C title.

With a scheduled 11 a.m. start Saturday, the Pierson girls will be on their bus before 9 a.m., heading west to play the opponent it dominated 12-4 in Mashashimuet Park last month and then lost to last Friday, 9-2.

Regardless of the final score in Saturday’s opener, game two is set for the park next Wednesday at 4 p.m., the Memorial Day holiday making for a three-day break between match-ups. A spilt of those first two games would require a game three in Port Jeff next Friday at 4 p.m.

In outscoring the Lady Whalers last Friday, the Lady Royals rolled up the win that gave them the home field for games one and three. A Pierson win Friday would have done the same thing for the Sag Harbor girls and would have moved them into a tie for second place in League VIII. Instead the Lady Whalers finished the regular season 8-8 while the Lady Royals ended 10-6.

 

Playoff Talk

 

From the beginning Lady Whaler coach Melissa Edwards has liked what she’s had to work with this year. “We have all the pieces and all the talent to go far. What we’ve needed is more experience, more confidence and more consistency. Those are the things we’ve been working on building all season.”

 “The girls have put their work in, especially on hitting of late. We get that going Saturday and we’ll be OK and the game becomes easy; if we come out and wander in our focus and in our effort, it’ll be a lot harder to get ahead.”

“When we show up to win, we can give anyone a game. When we show up to play, we struggle doing little things, especially at the plate,” said Coach Edwards yesterday. “The effort in practice this week has been all I could want and then some. Getting a win Saturday will depend on whether we can take what we’ve been doing and execute under pressure, come what may.”

 

Popularity: 4% [?]