Riverhead is going to need to bring its “A” game this high school boys basketball season, night in and night out.

“Usually that’s just coach talk, but it’s the truth this year,” coach John Rossetti said. “You can’t come out flat. You got to come out ready to play every game.”

That’s particularly important for the Blue Waves (9-11 last season) to keep in mind now that Suffolk County League II has been revamped into a tough nine-team league. Among the teams they will be facing are two-time defending county Class AA champion Half Hollow Hills East, Smithtown West, Northport and Copiague.

Every game should mean something. A loss here or there could mean saying goodbye to the playoffs, which Riverhead has missed the last two years.

“You don’t look at the schedule and say, ‘That’s a gimme game tonight,’ that’s for sure,” said Rossetti.

Riverhead has two All-League seniors in point guard Cristian Pace and forward Quashiem Miller. They both averaged about 13 points per game. Two other starters return, junior shooting guard Zy’aire Pittman and senior forward Robert Tyre. Tyre is coming back from a sprained knee and is expected to receive medical clearance in a week.

Rossetti described Pace as a “team kid. He doesn’t care if he has 15 points or 15 assists — as long as the team wins, that’s all he cares about.”

Miller is 6-3 but plays like he’s 6-6. “He’s a workhorse,” Rossetti said. “He’s a silent giant. He just goes out there and rebounds and scores. He has a nose for the ball.”

More varsity experience is offered by junior guard/forward Albert Daniels and senior guards Dashaun Massenburg and Anthony Miles.

New to the team are sophomore shooting guard Jacob Wilkinson, senior forward KeShaun Ward, freshman forward Deongae Sykes, junior guards Christian Maysonet and Jahquel Blount, sophomore guard Adrian Johnson and sophomore forward Shammond Henry.

How does this season’s team compare to the 2017-18 version?

“It’s a little more experienced,” Rossetti said. “What does that equate to? I really don’t know yet. It’s all about peaking at the right time.”

Rossetti said Riverhead will continue its traditional running style. “We’ve never really had a really tall team, so we have to utilize our quickness to create offense,” he said.

At the same time, it will be important for the Blue Waves to take care of the ball.

“That’s the most important thing by far, limit our turnovers,” Rossetti said. “Our assist-to-turnover ratio has to be on the positive side.”

At the conclusion of Shoreham-Wading River’s 1-19 season in 2017-18, coach Kevin Culhane sat down with his returning varsity and junior varsity players for a frank talk about what they needed to do.

“I said, ‘Look, you guys have to get better skill-wise,’ ” he said. “It was difficult. The kids put forth a good effort. We just didn’t have enough basketball skills. We just couldn’t put the ball in the basket. We had difficulty competing with teams.”

Culhane said he has seen evidence of players putting time into improving their game in the off-season, refining their skills by playing in a summer league and participating in clinics.

That should help a virtually completely new team that has only two players with previous varsity experience. Sophomore point guard Tommy Bell and senior wing Matt Cook were both reserves last season. They’re tagged as starters along with junior guard Cameron LoSchiavo, sophomore wing Tristan Costello and 6-7 sophomore post player Adam Gawreluk.

Gawreluk is an interesting case. Culhane said Gawreluk honed his skills and went from being a JV player who hardly played to a varsity starter.

Post player Will Jantzen is a senior who made the team for the first time. The team’s junior class includes post player Chris Baumeister, guard Christian Marcado, wing Antonio Marccaro, guard Jacob Vogel, wing Peter Flanagan and wing Aidan Drost. Sophomore David Tedesco is a wing as well.

“They love basketball and they play well as a team,” Culhane said. “They share the ball on offense and on defense we’re getting better on defense all the time. I’d like to be competitive in every game. I’d like us to grow as a team, get better as the year goes on and at the end of the game, I’d like the other team to say, win, lose or draw, Shoreham gave us a heck of a game and we competed.

“Our league is going to be very difficult, but hopefully we’re going to go in there and fight the good fight. I said to them, the effort’s got to be there every game.”

bliepa@timesreview.com

Photo caption: Riverhead’s All-League senior point guard, Cristian Pace, maneuvers under the basket during a scrimmage against Bridgehampton Tuesday. (Credit: Daniel De Mato)

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Wrestling is a passion for Jake Benedetto. It has been ever since he took up the sport as a youngster. It was a focal point for him as high school wrestler for East Islip and Islip, and then at the collegiate level with SUNY/Oneonta.

Benedetto carried that passion over to coaching. He was an assistant coach for Unatego in upstate New York for one season, coached two seasons at Bayport-Blue Point (one year as the head coach) and then coached the Longwood and Riverhead junior varsity teams.

And now Benedetto finds himself as the successor to Tom Riccio, a National Wrestling Hall of Fame inductee who became Riverhead’s varsity coach in 2015.

“This has been a long journey for me,” said Benedetto, 28.

Benedetto’s initial impression of Riverhead was positive. “I tell you one thing about this town and the people around here,” he said, “everyone here is super supportive.”

Lawrence Bishop, who was third last season in the League III Championships at 170 pounds, leads a squad that has a number of returning veterans like fellow seniors Hosea Blancarte (152 pounds), Dominic Bossey (132), Jared Cawley (126) and Ronan Cruz (220) as well as juniors Zach Merker (126), Katie Moore (170) and Sean Prunty (182).

Among the team’s younger members are sophomores Spencer Lucas (120), Michael Panchak (132), Romel Richards (heavyweight) and freshmen Xavier Moore (99), Cassius Johnson (120) and Victor Caba (152).

“I would say we have a good balance, just seeing my lineup,” Benedetto said. “I have a great group of senior leaders that are doing the right things in school, doing the right things in class.”

Asked what he asks from his wrestlers, Benedetto said: “I think more than anything, I just push for them to be good people and I can teach those lessons about hard work and goals … I don’t really demand wins and losses. I demand being the best you can possibly be.”

Riverhead’s first action will be Saturday in the Takedown Autism Duals at William Floyd High School. Similarly to his own wrestling days, Benedetto gets pumped up before the season starts.

“I don’t sleep the night before the first day,” he said. “I get so excited about the smell of the cleaner on the mat, the smell of the tape on the floor. I couldn’t ask for more.”

Shoreham-Wading River fans in the stands at Suffolk County Community College in Brentwood were chanting, “He’s a freshman! He’s a freshman!”

Connor Pearce, meanwhile, went about the business of winning his first Suffolk County championship last season. He pinned Rocky Point’s Rocky D’Elia at 3 minutes and 40 seconds of the Division II final at 113 pounds. In doing so, Pearce wrapped up the award for the most pins in the least amount of time — four in 10:23.

The unseeded Pearce also earned his first appearance in the state tournament, where he went 1-2. He was pinned by Walton Delhi’s Chandler Merwin 54 seconds into their quarterfinal.

Coming off his 33-8 season, Pearce (48-12 for his career) undoubtedly tasted enough postseason success that he wants more.

“He is a machine,” coach Joe Condon said of Pearce, who will wrestle in the 120-pound weight class this season. “He is a scoring machine. He trains very hard, very tough kid, very focused, very determined, and there’s no substitute for that.”

SWR also has two county runners-up in seniors Chris Vedder (29-12) and Ed Troyano (37-6), who wrestled at 106 and 120 pounds, respectively.

“They felt the pain of losing in the finals and there’s nothing wrong with that,” Condon said. “That happens. But they want to get back and they want to win.”

Condon said Vedder “embraces the grind. He just works, works, works.”

As for Troyano, who has a 91-22 career record, Condon said: “He’s just relentless. He’s offense, offense, always attacking, attacking. He wrestles year-round. He’s always looking for more competition. He’s not satisfied.”

SWR sophomore Jake Jablonski, who was third in the county at 113 pounds, is coming off an injury. Dylan Blanco, a sophomore who was fourth in Suffolk at 195, moves up to 220.

Wes Pase (132) is one of only three returning seniors. The Wildcats also have: freshman Craig Jablonski (99), freshman Tristan Petretti (99, 106), junior Chris Anderson (126, 132), junior Dan Dacos (138, 145), sophomore Sean Miller (138, 145), sophomore Connor Mullahey (140, 145), junior Juan Arango (145, 152), sophomore Connor Hughes (152, 160), junior Jared Sciarrino (170), junior Sal Livigni (182), sophomore Jake Ekert (195), junior Liam Daly (195), junior Connor Delumen (195) and sophomore Michael Scott (220).

While last season’s team had six freshmen in the lineup, this year SWR has “more experience and I think it’s going to make a difference,” said Condon.

As for work ethic, the Wildcats have that, too.

Condon said, “There are no athletes in the district who work harder than these kids do and I’m really proud of that.”

bliepa@timesreview.com

Photo caption: Riverhead’s new head coach, Jake Benedetto, is flanked by Jared Cawley (left) and Ronan Cruz. (Credit: Daniel De Mato)

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Jackie Zilnicki steps in as the team’s third coach in three years. Graduation has taken away the familiar faces of Faith Johnson-DeSilvia, Kim Ligon and Kate McCarney.

With a fairly clean break from its past, Riverhead High School girls basketball opens a new chapter in its history.

“It is a new beginning,” said Zilnicki, who more than anyone else will write it.

Zilnicki, a former Riverhead player who herself who went on to play for Western Connecticut State University, was an assistant coach for the Blue Waves last season. She worked with Kenny Coard, who had taken over following Dave Spinella’s 14 seasons in charge of the Blue Waves.

Now it’s Zilnicki’s turn to run the show.

“I’ve learned a lot,” she said. “Now I’ve got to do it.”

Riverhead (15-7 last season) reached the Suffolk County Class AA quarterfinals last season before falling to Brentwood.

“We lost some good seniors last year,” Zilnicki said. “We had a good season last year. Now we’re looking to keep that going.”

Four seniors who saw a good deal of playing time will lead the way: guard Katie Brown, forward Kristina Dunn, forward/center Angie Graziano and forward Regan Montefusco. Another senior, Christy Falisi, missed the entire 2017-18 season with injury. Cece Khan, a junior guard, will be the catalyst on defense. “Her energy and her passion on defense, you can’t teach that,” said Zilnicki.

Sophomore forward Kendal Kwasna and junior guard Megan McIntosh were both pulled up to the varsity team for the playoffs.

Ishanti Gumbs, a junior point guard who transferred from Southampton, is new to the team along with forward Jordan Palmer and guards Kaleigh Seal, Tanaya Love and Aona Weston.

The key to the team’s success, Zilnicki said, will be “our energy on defense, getting the rebounds, boxing out. Our offense will start from our defense. We have to be hungry on defense, every possession.”

“Every season you want to make playoffs, but our goal every day is to get better, compete every game,” she continued. “We can make playoffs, but we’re in a tough league, so we have to show up every day.”

The learning curve is sharp for young players. They can improve a great deal over a relatively short period of time.

That’s an exciting prospect for Adam Lievre, who has the youngest Shoreham-Wading River team in his six years as the team’s coach.

The Wildcats (14-7) return three starters and five players with varsity experience. “The rest of them are playing their first high school games,” said Lievre.

SWR’s youth movement includes two freshmen, three eighth-graders — and a great deal of promise.

“They’re small, they’re inexperienced, but they’re special kids,” Lievre said. “They’re hard workers … They’re going to have a bright future.”

SWR, which lost to Kings Park in a Suffolk Class A quarterfinal last season, features a pair of All-League players in senior point guard Michele Corona and junior forward Abby Korzekwinski. Junior forward Hayden Lachenmeyer was a starter as well. The other two returners are both seniors, forward Melissa Marchese and guard Julia DeGoyler.

Two juniors, forward Gabby Meli and guard Megan Greene, are new to the team. And then come the youngsters: freshmen guards Alexa Constant and Carlie Cutinella and eighth-grade guards Sophie Costello, Annie Sheehan and Grace Ann Leonard.

“We are very, very young,” Lievre said. “Definitely, as expected, there’s going to be some growing pains.”

SWR, previously known as a running team, now looks to throw the ball down low. Lievre said the post game is SWR’s strength. He said Korzekwinski, who plays AAU ball year-round, will work down low with Lachenmeyer and Marchese. “We’re going to rely on our bigs and do a lot of damage with our posts,” he said. “The other kids are quick, fast and athletic.”

The starting lineup could be a fluid situation.

“Someone has got to start the first game,” Lievre said. “Will that remain? That’s a question mark. You’re pretty much looking at 1A and 1B at certain positions.”

bliepa@timesreview.com

Photo caption: Riverhead forward Kristina Dunn taking a shot during Tuesday’s practice. (Credit: Daniel De Mato)

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The early part of the winter track season doesn’t present the kind of typical competition that athletes can expect in most sports. There are no head-to-head competitions where an opponent travels to another school. Instead, teams compete at larger meets, typically at Suffolk County Community College in Brentwood, where the results are more about individual performances rather than team wins or losses.

With that in mind, the Riverhead girls coaches wanted to do something to pique the interest of the younger athletes on the team.

On Friday, the team traveled to New York City to compete in the North Shore High School Season Opener at The Armory Track & Field Center. It was the earliest in the season the coaches had brought the team into the city for a meet, coach Justin Cobis said.

“We wanted to show a lot of the younger kids, this is a pretty big deal,” he said. “This is a really cool venue and this is a cool sport to get them excited. And they really bought into it.”

The Blue Waves, who featured about 50 kids on the winter team, have reason to be excited starting this season. They’re coming off a division championship in the cross country season this past fall, and many of those top distance runners will continue over onto the track. The girls from cross country took some brief time off after the fall to recharge their batteries and now are back in full swing for winter.

The Blue Waves had only a few seniors last year and featured a large core of sophomores who are now juniors.

“We have a nice balance this year,” Cobis said. “We were very young last year but now we’re kind of hopefully maturing a bit and getting some younger talent into the pool as well.”

Junior Christina Yakaboski, who was the top runner from cross country, returns in the 3,000. In the team’s crossover meet Sunday she won that event in 11 minutes, 10.22 seconds. Juniors Megan Kielbasa, Emma Conroy and Kristina DeRaveniere are all runners who are transitioning from cross country into the distance and relay events.

The Blue Waves have skill beyond distance events. Junior Ashli Bell is a newcomer to the team who has the coaches excited. She came out for the team without much prior experience and has been an unexpected surprise. She’ll be competing alongside a familiar face in junior Miasha Pittman, who’s a leader in the sprints and jumps. Pittman took third in the 300-meter dash Sunday (45.23) and eighth in the long jump (14 feet 8 inches).

Senior Julia Divan returns in the high jump. Cobis said she’s like another assistant coach with the way she helps lead her teammates. Between her and sophomore Stephanie Berkeley, the Blue Waves have two high jumpers who will have a chance to compete among some of the best in the county. Berkeley cleared 4-11 at Sunday’s crossover meet.

Freshmen Emani Womack and Enaria Suazo will compete in sprints and jumps.

“Those are two real instant contributors for us,” Cobis said. “We’re going to get them experience so that come spring, they’re going to be ready to go out of the blocks.”

Sophomore Shannon O’Brien returns in the race walk. She was third (9:16.75) in Friday’s event at The Armory.

Senior Morgan Fritscher and junior Jenna Smith are both pole vaulters.

Shoreham-Wading River won’t have the same star power after the graduation of standout Katherine Lee, whom the Wildcats could pencil in to win just about any event she competed in. But there’s enough talent left over for the Wildcats to be one of the top teams in their league. That starts with senior Alexandra Smith, who recently accepted a scholarship for Wagner College where she’ll continue her athletic career. Smith is a standout distance runner.

Junior Nicole Garcia is another top distance runner who was 16th overall in the county at the cross country division championship meet in the fall. She started off the winter season with a second-place finish in the 600 (1:43.43) Sunday at a crossover meet.

“Those are the big two,” said Shoreham coach Paul Koretzki.

The Wildcats will have talent in the race walk with sophomore Torre Parrinello, who was third in the 800 race walk Sunday in 3:57.94. Koretzki said she’s already “improved dramatically.”

Senior Alicia Lopez is a sprinter who ran 7.93 in the 55-meter dash Sunday for seventh overall. She also ran the 300. Sophomore India McKay ran the 1,000 and finished seventh in 3:33.96.

Koretzki said he hopes to find some good combinations in the relay events and is also encouraged by the weight throwers.

Photo caption: Kristina Deraveniere hands off to Emma Conroy in the 4 x 800 relay at last year’s county championship meet. (Credit: Riverhead track courtesy)

joew@timesreview.com

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The Mattituck Tuckers don’t approach each defensive possession simply aiming for a stop. They want the ball back. Sooner the better.

That hungry defense, at times in a full court pressure, has the Tuckers in constant hunt for steals. The goal is to use their defense to fuel the offense.

It all came together Wednesday night as the Tuckers forced Riverhead into 33 turnovers while controlling the tempo. Mattituck bounced back from an early hole to lead most of the way en route to a 44-31 win at Mattituck High School.

Mackenzie Hoeg led all scorers with 16 points to help lift the Tuckers to their first win of the season. It was a far different game than their season opener, a 48-18 loss at West Islip Monday.

The Tuckers built a 19-point lead in the fourth with a dominant quarter just as it looked as if Riverhead was ready to make a run.

Riverhead senior Angelina Graziano (7 points) converted a three-point play late in the third quarter to pull the Blue Waves within four points. But 30 seconds later, Rachel Janis connected on a 3-pointer to extend the lead back to six.

The Tuckers carried that momentum into the fourth, starting off with a couple quick baskets from Hoeg and Jaden Thompson. Both baskets were scored on fastbreak layups after steals, a familiar theme. Thompson, who played a key role in the disruptive Tucker defense, finished with 11 points.

The Blue Waves opened the game shooting well from outside, connecting on three 3-pointers in the opening quarter. Junior Ishanti Gumbs hit a pair. But the offense never got on track after that, largely due to the turnovers and the missed opportunities down low.

The Blue Waves dropped to 1-2 to start the new season.

Top photo caption: Riverhead’s Regan Montefusco attempts to box out Mattituck’s Julie Seifert. (Credit: Joe Werkmeister)

See more photos:

CeCe Khan eyes her opportunity.

Ishanti Gumbs shoots.

Ishanti Gumbs dribbles the ball.

Senior Kristina Dunn leads the Blue Waves in the postgame handshake.

Mackenzie Hoeg brings the ball up while guarded by Katie Brown.

Mackenzie Hoeg takes a shot as CeCe Khan defends.

Rachel Janis of Mattituck and Ishanti Gumbs of Riverhead.

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The way Sal Loverde looks at it, the season that begins in mid-November doesn’t really end until June. The indoor track and field season may officially end in March, but for many athletes, the winter is a chance to begin putting in the work that will ultimately pay the biggest dividends at the end of spring.

In Riverhead, many of the athletes on the indoor track and field team will continue with the program through the outdoor season. That gives the coaching staff, led by Loverde, ample time to help mold the sprinters, distance runners and jumpers into their best form.

Kian Martelli, a senior, didn’t need much time to get into his midseason form. After qualifying for the state championship meet last winter, Martelli picked up this year right where he left off in the triple jump. The Blue Waves traveled into New York City for the North Shore High School Season Opener Friday and Martelli jumped an impressive 42 feet 6 1/2 inches in the triple jump.

“First time jumping this year, with minimal preparatory work because we’re right in the beginning of the season,” Loverde said. “It’s a really good starting spot.”

Martelli jumped 41 feet at the state championship meet. Martelli can also contribute in the high jump and long jump.

Loverde characterized the upcoming season as a bit of a rebuilding process, but the Blue Waves do return talent across a number of different events.

“We have a lot of support in kind of each event area, which should make us somewhat competitive as we groom new talent,” he said.

Senior Ryan Keane returns in distance events. He ran the 600 Friday to get some speed work in and did well by running 1 minute 29.42 seconds. Senior Sean Allen is a versatile athlete who can compete in an array of events, from hurdles, to middle distance to jumps. In the spring, he used those myriad skills to compete in the pentathlon. He started off Friday in the 55-hurdles (9.17) and high jump (5-08).

Senior Ryan Carrick also returns in the distance events. He was the top performer for Riverhead during cross country, finishing 34th overall at the division championships in October and 25th in Class A at the Section XI State Qualifier in November.

Loverde said all the returning athletes are “highly motivated.”

Riverhead has a long history of success in the pole vault and the Blue Waves will aim to keep that tradition going behind senior Iyriy Denys, who cleared 12-09 in the outdoor season a year ago.

“He had a great run in winter and spring last year and he’s looking to forge forward this year,” Loverde said. “We would love to see him reach an opportunity to make the state meet. I think he has the potential to do that.”

Junior Eduardo Duran is another middle distance runner who can compete in the 600 and relays. Loverde said Duran started to surge toward the end of last season.

“He recognized he had the aptitude to really excel,” Loverde said.

Junior Tyreek Parker, who’s been resting a sore back coming off football season, will contribute in the hurdles and sprints. He’ll likely anchor the 4 x 200 relay. Senior Eric Behr is a shot-putter and AJ Walker can compete in the hurdles and jumps.

At Shoreham-Wading River, Joe Mordaski returns for this second season as head coach for both the indoor and outdoor seasons. The Wildcats lost some top-end talent from last year’s team to graduation and return a younger core this year.

“One thing that my boys all really share in common is their competitive spirit and I’m really looking forward to seeing that competitive spirit this season,” Mordaski said.

The Wildcats return a pair of strong distance runners in junior Adam Zelin and senior Joey Krause. Both excelled in the fall on the cross country team.

Junior Dylan Jung had a strong showing last spring in the long jump, finishing ninth in the Section XI State Qualifier as a sophomore. He’ll look to build on that performance while also competing in the triple jump.

“We’re very strong in the field events this year,” Mordaski said, adding that there’s some up-and-comers in the shot put and high jump.

joew@timesreview.com

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Hanging with Connetquot is a tall order. Literally and figuratively.

For a high school boys basketball team, the Thunderbirds have nice height with the likes of the 6-7 Sean Andersen, 6-6 Emmanual Mondesire, 6-4 Jaden Kealey and 6-2 Taevon Bazemore. And they can all play.

How does a shorter team game plan against that?

“You attack them and challenge them,” said Riverhead coach John Rossetti.

That is just what the Blue Waves did Thursday. Riverhead led for much of the fast-paced Suffolk County League II game, which was played at a high caliber. The Blue Waves did their best to neutralize Connetquot’s height advantage, only to fall short in the end for a 92-88 overtime loss at Riverhead High School.

“It shows that we can go with any team,” said Riverhead senior forward Quashiem Miller, who had 17 points, 13 rebounds, four assists and three blocks. “The confidence is there.”

Rossetti called it a “quality loss against a quality team.”

Add this to Riverhead’s close losses to Mount Sinai and Northport, and the Blue Waves (3-3, 2-2) have lost three games by a total of seven points. “There hasn’t been a night when we haven’t played well,” said Rossetti.

Bazemore (24 points) and Kealey (20 points, 11 rebounds) had four points apiece during an 8-0 burst that put Connetquot (5-1, 3-0) ahead, 89-81, in overtime.

After Riverhead’s Cristian Pace (25 points, 10 assists) drilled his fifth three-pointer of the game and Miller converted a layup off a steal by Zy’Aire Pittman, the Blue Waves closed to within three.

Mondesire (17 points, 11 rebounds) sank a pair of free throws before Pace again cut the Connetquot lead to three with a layup off a feed from Miller.

A free throw by Bazemore with 13 seconds to go made it 92-88.

Two three-point attempts by Riverhead in the dying seconds missed the mark.

“It [stinks] to lose, but intense games like that are always fun,” said Pittman, who scored all of his season-high 19 points in the first half and had five treys and nine assists.

Both teams shot well. Through the first three quarters, Connetquot shot 25-for-47 (53 percent) from the field and Riverhead went 26-for-51 (51 percent).

Pace played a tremendous game, highlighted by a no-look pass to Miller for a layup and a running bank shot with his right hand off the glass from a nice pass by Pittman.

Connetquot, which had trailed since the middle of the first quarter and by as many as 15, worked its way back. Andersen (22 points, nine rebounds) scored nine straight Connetquot points for a 55-54 edge with 1:57 left in the third. Riverhead regained the lead before stubborn Connetquot bounced back again. John O’Connell stuck a three, making it 77-76 Connetquot with 1:24 left in the fourth quarter.

Miller, who entered the game as Riverhead’s top scorer, averaging 19.2 points per game, dropped in a free throw to even it at 77-77 with 1:04 to go in the quarter. Neither team scored again in regulation time, although Riverhead survived a scare. Kealey was fouled while coming down with an offensive rebound, sending him to the line for a one-and-one with four seconds remaining. Following a timeout, he missed the foul shot. Riverhead’s Robert Tyre grabbed the rebound and flipped an outlet pass to Pace, whose heave from beyond the mid-court line struck the ceiling.

On to overtime.

Mondesire had five points and Bazemore added four for Connetquot in the extra four-minute session.

For the game, Riverhead received 15 points and six assists from Albert Daniels.

In the end, though, Riverhead came up short.

Though disappointed in the final result, Rossetti was anything but disappointed in how his team has been playing.

“We had some opportunities to win the game,” he said. “We’re working hard. We’re playing together. They’re much more confident in themselves.”

Said Pittman, “I was proud of the way we played.”

bliepa@timesreview.com

Photo caption: Riverhead senior forward Quashiem Miller (17 points, 13 rebounds, four assists, three blocks) finds himself amid a forest of Connetquot arms, with Sean Andersen blocking his path to the basket. (Credit: Garret Meade)

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Zy’Aire Pittman said he approaches every basketball game the same way — with confidence.

Riverhead’s second-year starter is known for both his passing and shooting skills, but he’s not picky. “Whatever is needed, I’ll do,” he said.

When Riverhead needed Pittman Thursday he was there. The 6-0 guard had a hot hand in the opening 16 minutes and struck for a season-high 19 points in the first half to help Riverhead to a 43-39 halftime lead over visiting Connetquot. Pittman was held scoreless the rest of the way and Riverhead lost the Suffolk County League II game in overtime, 92-88, but the junior impressed, nonetheless.

“Tonight he was just showing you what he can really do,” said Riverhead senior forward Quashiem Miller.

Pittman, who raised his average to 11.7 points per game, nailed down five three-point shots and also dished out nine assists.

“Zy’Aire came out hot,” Riverhead coach John Rossetti said. “All the kids can go out any night and erupt like that. He had a monster first half.”

The first 12 of Pittman’s points came in the first quarter, helping Riverhead jump out to a 22-12 lead.

Pittman has shown a nice working relationship with senior guard Cristian Pace, who himself had a monster game with 25 points, five three-pointers and 10 assists.

Having a full varsity season under his belt has helped Pittman this season. “I’m a lot more calmer and the experience from last year helped me a lot,” he said, adding, “I’ll do whatever is needed to win.”

The Blue Waves may say they’ll take more of that first half from him.

“Cristian Pace and Quashiem Miller, everyone knows about them,” Rossetti said, “but we have other kids as well.”

bliepa@timesreview.com

Photo caption: Zy’Aire Pittman, who scored 19 first-half points for Riverhead, trying to dribble around Connetquot’s John O’Connell. (Credit: Garret Meade)

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At the start of the 2018 season, the Riverhead girls lacrosse team adopted a motto of “we over me.” The Blue Waves had reason for optimism to begin the year and they knew it would take a collective team effort to take the program to the next level.

The Blue Waves were coming off an 11-7 season and its first playoff appearance. Now, just making the playoffs wasn’t going to satisfy the players. They wanted more. And as the preseason No. 6 seed out of 22 teams, there was an expectation to make the playoffs.

“They’re amped up and ready for the season,” Riverhead coach Ashley Schandel said during the preseason.

The Blue Waves were just that. With a team that featured multiple scorers and tough defenders, the Blue Waves went on to accomplish their most successful season, marking a huge step forward into a deep field of talent-rich Suffolk County.

By early May, as the postseason neared, the Blue Waves had won eight of nine games and their confidence continued to grow. During that span, the Blue Waves had outscored opponents 112-73.

Later that month, the Blue Waves traveled to Middle Country for a quarterfinal matchup against the No. 4 seed. It was a rematch of an early-season game that Riverhead won by a goal. And this one was just as tight. Delu Rizzo’s goal of a return pass from Lauren Kenny with 30 seconds left in the second half snapped a tie and lifted Riverhead to a thrilling 13-12 victory.

“We made history,” Schandel said.

The victory sent the Blue Waves to the Class A semifinals against top-seeded and unbeaten Northport. The Blue Waves put up a valiant effort, but ultimately fell 15-10.

“We never gave up and played to the last buzzer,” said Megan Kielbasa. “We gave it all we got for a new team coming here.”

Photo caption: Kayla Kielbasa of Riverhead, right. (Credit: Robert O’Rourk)

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The Riverhead field hockey team began the season with high expectations. After all, the team had lost only two starters from the previous year, when the Blue Waves won their first-ever home playoff game.

The Blue Waves returned four-year varsity players like seniors Kayla Kielbasa, Angie Graziano, Christy Falisi and Sarah Rempe.

“I’m hoping that they have a great season,” coach Cheryl Walsh-Edwards said during the preseason. “I think this senior group, especially, deserves it.”

The Blue Waves had a great season indeed, posting an 8-6 record that put them into fifth place in the Division I power rankings out of 24 teams.

It set the stage for a home playoff match in October where the Blue Waves faced No. 12 West Islip. Kielbasa led the way with a goal and assist to lead the Blue Waves to a 3-0 victory. The victory sent the Blue Waves into the county quarterfinals, where they met No. 4 Ward Melville, a perennial powerhouse in Suffolk County field hockey. The Blue Waves battled the Patriots hard and were tied in the second half before Arielle Rohan broke through with a go-ahead goal to give Ward Melville the lead. The Blue Waves had taken a 1-0 lead into the second half before the Patriots turned it on late and escaped with a 3-1 win to bring Riverhead’s season to an end. Ward Melville ended up dropping its next game in the semifinals against top-seeded Sachem East, the county champion.

Photo caption: The Riverhead field hockey team celebrates a win. (Credit: Bob Liepa)

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In the spirit of the holiday season, the Riverhead High School girls basketball team was in a giving mood Thursday.

Sometimes, however, it was the wrong type of giving that the Blue Waves had in mind, as in giving away the basketball.

Riverhead made more than enough turnovers — 26 to be exact — that added up to a 51-35 defeat at Bay Shore in Suffolk County League II action at Ralph Elliott Gymnasium.

Those turnovers, many unforced, stifled possession and zapped any momentum the Blue Waves had or were trying to create, whether it was an awry pass here, indecision there, an ill-advised pass into a crowd of players or an inbounds pass that did not make its mark. It can add up in a hurry.

“They’re a good team. They had athletes, they had shooters and they had big girls,” Riverhead coach Jackie Zilnicki said. “It wasn’t our game today. We still have to figure out ways to create an offense and our main thing is taking care of the basketball, limiting our turnovers. We still have to get better at that.”

There were other factors as well that made life difficult for the Blue Waves. Due to the turnovers and some superior offensive rebounding, the Marauders (3-3, 1-2) were able to double the number of field-goal attempts they had over the Blue Waves (2-5, 1-3) — 80 to 40. And since the shooting percentages were almost identical — Bay Shore was at 27.6 percent and Riverhead at 27.5 — that helped turn the tide in the Marauders’ favor.

And then there was Bay Shore’s twin 6-foot-1 towers at forward — Majegane Barry, whose 13 points tied her with guard Angie Fargas for a game-high total, and Daja Farmer (eight points). Together they ruled the boards.

“We played good, but I think we just all need to work together and use each other’s strengths and put them all together,” said forward Kristina Dunn, who led Riverhead with 12 points. “We need more dedication and just want it more.”

Riverhead never led, although it knotted things up at 5-5 on the first of Angie Graziano’s three treys with 3 minutes, 19 seconds remaining in the opening quarter. Barry sank a layup with 2:13 left in the period to give the hosts the lead for good.

After Bay Shore reeled off eight consecutive points to grab an 18-6 advantage with 5:35 remaining in the second quarter, Zilnicki called a timeout. That seemed to settle the Blue Waves down as they moved within 18-16 with 3:11 to go, thanks to eight of Graziano’s 11 points (two treys and a two-point bucket) and Dunn’s basket.

The Blue Waves continued to throw the ball away as Bay Shore went on an 8-3 burst to close out the half for a 26-19 lead.

Still within striking distance at the start of the second half, everything just about went south for Riverhead in the third quarter as it was outscored, 16-2, behind Barry’s seven points. The Blue Waves hit only one basket out of nine attempts — junior point guard Ishanti Gumbs’ 15-footer with 4:12 left — while committing eight turnovers.

“I think we should have kept our heads more up after halftime and worked more together,” Dunn said. “We couldn’t get out of it, especially on defense.”

Graziano said Bay Shore found a way to shut down Riverhead. “We played really well in the first two quarters,” she said. “At halftime they realized who did what and how to guard them and they started to lock us down a little bit better. Then we started to fall a little bit.”

Things started to compound themselves.

“We were just getting very frustrated,” Graziano said. “We were missing layups. We were fouling, having unnecessary fouls that we didn’t need. We were getting frustrated not only with ourselves but with each other. That never helps us, and we know that. It’s harder to settle down.”

Zilnicki was still optimistic the team can it around. After a closed scrimmage with Shoreham Wading River Friday, the Blue Waves will host Smithtown West in a league encounter on Wednesday.

“I think we’re going in the right direction,” she said. “Last year we graduated three or four seniors so now it’s these new girls stepping up and still everyone figuring out and understanding one another on offense. We’re getting there. We’ve gotten there defensively, now it’s offensively. Bay Shore is really good. I give them a lot of credit today. They came out strong. The main thing is we’ve got to catch the ball.”

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Since cheerleading became an officially sanctioned sport, Riverhead has emerged as one of the top teams in the county amid a field of talented teams. In 2018, which included the end of one season and the beginning of another, the Blue Waves continued that tradition.

In February, the Blue Waves competed at the Universal Cheerleaders Association National High School Cheerleading Championship. The team advanced to the finals for the second straight year. The Blue Waves went on to place 14th in Small Varsity Division I. The team had performed well enough in their first routine to bypass the semifinals and advance straight to the finals.

The Blue Waves arrived back from Florida set to continue in the Section XI competitions with a goal of advancing to the state tournament for the first time. Riverhead competed at the Section XI Championships later that month, and found some adversity awaited.

In the week leading up to the competition, the Blue Waves were forced to refine their routine after one of the team’s seniors and captain, Chelsea Cawley, suffered a knee injury that kept her out of the competition.

“We had people in positions that they had never been in before,” Riverhead coach Stephanie Piraino had said.

The Blue Waves took the adversity in stride, and positioned girls so that they didn’t have to downgrade their routine to open the possibility of scoring fewer points. Competing in Division I small at West Islip High School, the Blue Waves performed “a solid routine,” Piraino said, but it wasn’t enough to finish in the top five.

Not long after, Riverhead was already preparing for the 2018-19 season. And so far, in the new season, the Blue Waves have hit the mat running. The team won its first Section XI competition and has already qualified for the UCA Nationals once again.

Photo caption: Riverhead cheerleaders perform at the Section XI Championships. (Credit: Joe Werkmeister)

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On a sunny Saturday morning in April, the Riverhead Little League celebrated its 66th opening day. Players from T-ball through the majors for both softball and baseball marched during a parade of teams at Stotzky Park in Riverhead.

It was the start of what turned out to be a season to remember for the boys who made up the all-star team that competed for a chance to advance to the famed Little League World Series.

The all-star team of 11- and 12-year-olds had many of the same players who had a deep run in the younger age group two years earlier. Now, with an experienced and talented group, the all-stars were ready to make their farthest run in the tournament in years.

In the District 36 semifinals, the team defeated Moriches, 7-1, to make their second straight appearance in the finals.

In mid-July, pitcher Mike Mowdy flirted with a no-hitter as Riverhead downed the East Hampton All Stars, 4-1, to win the District 36 championship. It was the second title in that age group for Riverhead and first since 2008. Mowdy struck out 12 and drove in three runs.

Riverhead then won in dramatic fashion in the Section 4 East championship, pulling out a wild 3-2 win against Plainview. The victory sent the team to the state tournament. The team trailed 2-0 entering the final inning before staging a rally as catcher David Raynor hit a walk-off, two-run single to win it.

The magical ride for Riverhead ultimately came to an end in late July in the state tournament. Riverhead had been 10-0 before dropping two games in the state tournament.

“I feel like it’s an amazing experience,” said Riverhead leftfielder Luke Pilon.

Photo caption: Coaches and teammates congratulate catcher David Raynor of Riverhead after his walk off hit in the Section 4 East Playoff victory over Plainview. (Credit: Daniel De Mato)

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Three Riverhead High School records were broken Saturday night in the Marine Corps Holiday Classic at The Armory in Manhattan. Miasha Pittman set new marks in the preliminaries of the 200 (26.53 seconds) and 400 meters (1:02.50). In the 200, the junior broke Angela Smith’s 2004 record of 27.84. In the 400, she bettered the time of 1:03.10 that Meghan Van Bommel set in 2015. Meanwhile, Riverhead’s distance-medley relay team of Megan Kielbasa, Emma Conroy, Kristina Deraveniere and Christina Yakaboski clocked a time of 12:57.99 for fifth place. That abolished a 2004 school record of 13:21.51, set by Catherine Dillingham, Klurissa Williams, Ellen Dougherty and Lauren Hoblin.

“I was beyond proud to see the core of the team consisting of five juniors break three school records all in one night,” Riverhead coach Justin Cobis said. “Every member of the DMR team had a terrific cross-country season. Tonight’s record-setting performance is proof that they still have unfinished business. As for Miasha Pittman, she has matured and developed into a leader for our sprinters and jumpers and I can’t think of anyone that deserves to hold these records [more] than her!”

Photo caption: Riverhead junior Miasha Pittman set school records in the 200 and 400 meters Saturday night in the Marine Corps Holiday Classic at The Armory in Manhattan. (Photo credit: courtesy Justin Cobis)

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At 5-11, Kristina Dunn is taller than many of the high school players she competes against on the basketball court, and yet, Dunn knows what it’s like to play in someone’s shadow.

For years Dunn played in the shadow of her older sister, Sam Dunn, who just happened to be one of the best players Riverhead has produced. Currently, Sam is a junior playing for LIU Post. By the time Sam graduated high school in 2016, she had 1,016 career points and was the fifth Riverhead player to have reached the 1,000-point mark.

“Everyone wanted me to follow in her footsteps, but she was such a big footstep to follow,” Kristina, a senior forward for Riverhead, said. “I always felt obligated to be as good as she and she was a superstar.”

Kristina said she recalled being introduced, upon entering games as a substitute, as “Sam Dunn’s sister.”

That’s pressure.

Big shoes to fill, indeed, but Kristina has shown that she’s a pretty good player herself. Perhaps no better example of that was seen than on Wednesday when, displaying the sort of gutsy hustle her older sister is known for, Kristina led the Blue Waves to a 41-36 Suffolk County League II victory over Smithtown West at Riverhead High School.

Dunn turned in an all-around performance, and Riverhead (4-5, 2-3) needed every bit of it. Whenever the game seemed in danger of turning Smithtown West’s way, Dunn was there with a big basket, rebound or steal.

“She’s been awesome,” Riverhead coach Jackie Zilnicki said. “This was her best game of the year.”

It was a game that saw Dunn score a season-high 17 points as well as grab 16 rebounds. She had two assists, two steals and a block, to boot.

“Amazing,” teammate Angie Graziano said. “She always plays good, though.”

Dunn joined the varsity team as an eighth-grader and got to play two high school seasons with her older sister. She obviously learned some things along the way.

“She was kind of my inspiration,” Kristina said. “I always looked up to her.”

Sam would have been proud to see what her younger sister did Wednesday. Kristina was the difference-maker in a tight game that saw neither side lead by more than six points. The lead changed hands 10 times. The last time came when a Dunn layup made it 32-31 Riverhead early in the fourth quarter. An Ishanti Gumbs layup extended that lead to 34-31 moments later.

But Smithtown West (3-5, 0-4) managed to draw even at 34-34 on two free throws by Gabrianna Lorefice and another by Rebecca Farrell.

“We were on our toes the whole game,” Graziano said. “We were always there for each other.”

Dunn put Riverhead ahead for good, snapping the tie with a pair of free throws. Then she assisted on a nifty layup by Gumbs that made it 38-34 with 3 minutes, 18 seconds left.

A Lorefice layup cut that lead to two points before — guess who? — Dunn dropped a three-point shot for the game’s final points with 1:37 to go.

After Dunn, the next highest scorers for Riverhead were Christy Falisi with seven points and Katie Brown with six.

Points haven’t been easy to come by for Riverhead. “We’re not a high-scoring team, so we have to figure out ways to score,” Zilnicki said. “Defense has been our key the whole year.”

“We all need to learn how to work together more and just slow the ball down,” said Dunn.

Riverhead’s defense held Smithtown West to 26-percent shooting from the field. The Bulls hit only two of their last 13 field-goal attempts.

Lorefice led Smithtown West with 22 points. Tayor Mennella added eight.

Graziano, a senior, has played with both Dunns. Asked to compare their playing styles, she said: “They’re their own players. Kristina is making her own path.”

And, no longer in the shadows, shining in her own right.

Photo caption: Kristina Dunn pictured in a December game at Mattituck. (Credit: Joe Werkmeister/file)

bliepa@timesreview.com

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When numbers are down like this, it can be a challenge not to get down.

Riverhead High School has a small enough wrestling team as it is with numbers, so when a spate of injuries struck the Blue Waves, they really hurt.

A roster of 19 wrestlers has been reduced further by injuries that have left the team with 15 healthy wrestlers. Fifteen! That’s it.

Ouch!

“It’s kind of depressing,” said senior Ronan Cruz.

As bad as that is, Smithtown West coach Ken Leverich’s team, one of the best in Suffolk County, was in town Thursday for a League III match.

Ouch again!

Riverhead had to forfeit 10 bouts. Only five matches were actually wrestled in a contest that was completed in a swift half-hour. Jared Cawley and Cruz accounted for Riverhead’s only points in a 78-9 loss.

“This is probably the fastest dual meet we ever had,” said Cawley.

That’s the current reality for Riverhead (0-5, 0-4) and its new coach, Jake Benedetto. The focus now is on individual accomplishments and on paving the way for a better future.

“It definitely affects training, but I try to stay positive,” Benedetto said of his numbers situation. The important thing now, he said, is for his wrestlers to be “excited about wrestling and having them understand it’s about the bigger picture.”

Coming off a 52-28 loss at Centereach the night before, Riverhead was facing quality as well as quantity in Smithtown West (5-1, 5-0).

“I was tired from yesterday, just not feeling it,” Cruz said, “but before the match you get a burst of adrenaline.”

Cruz used that adrenaline — and a third-period escape and takedown — to score a 3-0 victory over junior Steven Zimmerman at 220 pounds. That raised his record to 8-4.

Because of forfeits and Vinny Zaffarese’s pin of Xavier Moore (14-4) at 5 minutes, 15 seconds of their opening bout at 99 pounds, Smithtown West held a 24-0 lead by the time Cawley stepped onto the mat.

Cawley failed to make weight for the league tournament last winter. “It was a really rough way to end the season,” he said.

In retrospect, Benedetto believes that may have been the best thing to happen to Cawley in terms of motivation.

Who can argue? After opening his senior season 2-4, Cawley won six of his next eight matches, including his pin of Smithtown West senior Jack DeSousa 3:02 into their bout at 126 pounds.

“I think probably this was the best match I wrestled all year,” said Cawley, who has been on the team since he was a seventh-grader, as has senior Dominic Bossey.

After executing an escape, Cawley put DeSousa on his back. “That was the match,” he said.

Benedetto said Cawley “wrestled lights out.” He added, “Cawley has really worked on his technique and really just started focusing on the things he’s great at.”

For one thing, Cawley, who trains with Moore and freshman Cassius Johnson, seems to have found a wrestling weight that works well for him. Last season he wrestled at 122. “I’m feeling really strong, confident, healthy,” he said. “Last year I wasn’t as confident … Now as a senior, I go out there, wrestle. I know what I have to do and I’m going to go out there and do my best.”

Smithtown West senior James Campanelli (132 pounds) pinned his opponent, sophomore Michael Panchak, at 1:14.

Another pin for the Bulls came from sophomore Logan Hutter (138), who stopped freshman Lenny Escobar at 1:49.

At this point in the season, wrestlers are gearing up for the postseason tournaments that in many cases will define their season.

“I just want to make it as far as I can,” Cruz said. “I want to place in the league [tournament]. I want to place in the county.”

bliepa@timesreview.com

Photo caption: Riverhead senior Jared Cawley taking control of his match at 126 pounds against Smithtown West senior Jack DeSousa. (Credit: Robert O’Rourk)

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The hardest part of Scott Hackal’s job as the Riverhead High School boys bowling coach these days may be right before matches. That’s when he has to figure out what names to jot down in his five-bowler lineup.

As simple as that sounds, it’s not easy. Not with this team.

The problem — if you want to call it that — is that Riverhead, a team without standouts, has tremendous parity.

“It’s balanced,” Hackal said. “Everybody’s the same.”

Thus, the difficulty trying to figure out the lineup, which changes from day to day, even game to game.

“When you think you got it, you don’t,” said Hackal.

Of the close to 20 bowlers he has to choose from, Hackal brings nine or 10 to matches. With only three seniors, it’s a young, up-and-coming team with bowlers whose games can rise and fall, making the selection process trickier still.

As sophomore Sean Maki sees it, though, it’s not a bad situation for the Blue Waves.

“It’s because competition’s fun,” he said. “We’re always competing, trying to be the best. It’s interesting because the scores fluctuate every day.”

So, on Monday, Hackal went with this starting five in Game 1 against visiting Comsewogue: Casey Cawley, Kuba Koziol, Lukasz Karwowski, Maki and Yash Patel. In the next game, he inserted Connor Cuccia, Billy Wagner and Roman Smith into the match. Then, in Game 3, he reinserted Koziol and Patel.

All in all, it wasn’t bad maneuvering by the coach because Riverhead, which had entered the Suffolk County League IV match in sixth place among eight teams with 101 points and a 738 team average, broke 800 in two of the games.

Comsewogue coach John Romero didn’t have to do any lineup juggling, not with the team he has. For the most part, he stuck with the fivesome of Vance Sanabria, Anthony Manetta, Joshua Rivera, Alex Smargiassi and Zach Weller. The only alteration Romero made came when he substituted Chris Rivoli for Manetta in the sixth frame of the third game.

Romero had no need to tinker much, though, not with a 668 three-game series from Weller in Comsewogue’s 29-4 win at The All Star in Riverhead. Comsewogue, which before the match sat a notch above Riverhead in the standings with 48 more points, took the total wood, 2,901-2,424.

Weller, a senior who has rolled three perfect games in his life (twice for the high school team), was a model of consistency, opening his day with four straight strikes. He registered scores of 225, 233 and 210, using 21 strikes and eight spares to help his cause. Weller, who fell six pins shy of equaling his season-high series, raised his average to 216.

The high game of the match, however, belonged to Smargiassi, a junior whose season-high 258 in the second game served as the foundation for a 640 series. He had 17 strikes and made 14 spares.

Sanabria posted a 568 series and Rivera added a 529.

At the start of the day, Riverhead had eight bowlers with averages between 144 and Cawley’s team-leading 159.

Maki, a sophomore, opened with a career-high 215 game en route to a 538 series. Cawley had a 502 series. They had 13 strikes each.

Wagner threw a season-high 205 in the second game.

Comsewogue took the first two games, 1,038-818 and 987-797. In the third game, the Warriors held a 736-631 lead entering the 10th frame before winning, 876-809.

“I think we bowled really well because we usually don’t hit 800,” Cawley, a sophomore, said. “It’s good that it’s a young team. We’ll grow together.”

The All Star is the new 22-lane home for the Blue Waves, who had previously played at nearby Wildwood Lanes for years. While Hackal believes his team may have lost the home-alley advantage it enjoyed on the drier lanes at Wildwood that opposing teams sometimes struggled with, there is a flip side to that coin. Maki believes it prepares the Blue Waves for the type of conditions they face at other alleys.

It may be a while before Hackal’s lineup writes itself, but he can’t complain about the progress he has already seen since the season started.

“We’re getting better every week,” he said. “Every game we’re getting better. In two years we’ll be there.”

bliepa@timesreview.com

Photo caption: Riverhead has a young team with only three seniors — from left, Roman Smith, Josh Caskie and Yash Patel. (Credit: Bob Liepa)

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The game goes down in the record book as a capital L, but the Riverhead boys basketball team hopes to turn Monday’s road loss at Half Hollow Hills East into something positive down its stretch run for the playoffs.

For three quarters the Blue Waves made the first-place Thunderbirds sweat before the hosts pulled away to a 75-65 victory in a Suffolk County League II game.

“You know, the next we see them I hope we make them sweat for four,” Riverhead coach John Rossetti said. “And we’re going to keep building and we’re going to keep working.”

The result left the Blue Waves with records of 6-6 overall and 4-4 in the league as they strive to reach the Class AA playoffs. They need to win at least six league games to book a postseason berth.

“Our kids are tough,” Rossetti said. “Every game we play we’re going to give them a ballgame. Our kids battle, they don’t step down to anyone, keep working hard.”

“A lot went wrong,” said senior forward Robert Tyre, who finished with 15 points. “We could have executed better down the stretch. Tough calls weren’t made. We can’t do anything about it now. The game’s over.”

Riverhead realized it was going to be a difficult game, although it turned the tables on the hosts. The Blue Waves tied it at 44-44 on Zy’Aire Pittman’s trey with one minute and 57 seconds left in the third quarter and took a 45-44 edge after Trye sank a free throw with 1:28 remaining.

Shane Dean (game-high 27 points), however, went coast-to-coast for a layup after a missed Riverhead shot with 1:14 left to give Hills East a 46-45 lead it never relinquished.

Hills East (10-2, 7-1) lived up to its nickname when it counted, thundering down the stretch as Max Caspi (eight) and Dean (seven) combined for 15 points during a 25-18 quarter that turned a 50-47 lead into a double-digit win. The Thunderbirds sank all seven of their foul shots in the final 81 seconds to hold the Blue Waves at arm’s length, going 8 of 11 in the final period.

“From the beginning of the game we have to go out aggressive, talk on defense, not laying back,” Tyre said. “Playing defense — that’s where it all starts — on defense.”

Like most of Hills East’s opponents, the Blue Waves needed a crane to move Caspi, a 6-foot-4, 225-pound center who controlled the boards at both ends. Quashiem Miller (team-high 21 points) and Tyre took turns trying to contain Caspi (21 points, 13 rebounds), who cleaned up under the basket.

“He’s a big body,” Rossetti said. “Tonight was probably the first game we were outrebounded. He did a nice job controlling the boards.”

The Thunderbirds were torrid, whether it was from the field at 54.7 percent (29 of 53) or from the foul line at 83 percent (20 of 24).

In contrast, the Blue Waves shot 37.5 percent (21 of 56) from the field, but a decent 73 percent from the free throw line (8 of 11).

“I would say in general, we didn’t have a good shooting night,” Rossetti said. “On those nights you’ve got to attack the rim a little bit more and I think that’s what they did better than us tonight. They got shots inside the paint where we didn’t have as many shots inside the paint. In a game like this where it’s close, it’s a lot easier to take a six-footer than it is to take a 19-footer.”

Riverhead canned only three of its 20 three-point attempts, although it seemed just about everyone that missed went in and out or rolled off the rim.

You would have thought that gravity would have caught up with some of them.

“We felt the same way, but sometimes the ball just doesn’t roll your way,” Rossetti said. “Today, that’s what it seemed like. The ball wasn’t bouncing our way tonight.”

The Blue Waves will have an opportunity to rectify that at Northport (10-3, 7-2) on Thursday at 6:15 p.m.

“We’re going to take this loss tonight, take it into Northport, that’s a definite,” Tyre said. “All the talking during the game, not making the right calls, not executing. We’re going to make sure we execute the next game.”

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It’s dangerous grabbing Tigers by the tail. They’re bound to react.

And that’s just what the Northport Tigers did Thursday night after Riverhead battled them in a tight first half in which the teams were separated by only two points.

The Tigers started taking big bites out of the Blue Waves, one three-point shot at a time. By the time all the damage was done, Northport had delighted its home fans by knocking down 11 three-pointers from 21 attempts in a 66-58 Suffolk County League II boys basketball victory. The Tigers (11-3, 8-2) clinched a playoff berth with their fifth straight win.

Northport is a team with length and a fine shooting touch. It was Northport’s three-pointers — long threes — that made the difference.

“Shooting deep,” Riverhead coach John Rossetti said. “It was unbelievable. You got to give them credit. They hit deep shots and we had guys on them.”

They were deep and deadly. Six of those threes were knocked down by Sean Walsh. The 6-3 junior guard finished with a game-high 29 points, 12 in the fourth quarter.

Ian Melamerson added 14 points and 13 rebounds and all nine of George Mansour’s points came from threes.

“When the ball movement is there, our guys make the extra pass and if they’re open they know they have the green light to shoot,” Northport coach Andrew D’Eloia said. He added, “It was one of those nights when our guys were in a rhythm and sharing the ball.”

Altogether, Northport made 24 of 50 field-goal attempts (48 percent).

Riverhead (6-7, 4-5), playing its first game of the second half of the league season, didn’t have that sort of a shooting touch, going 19-for-48 (39.6 percent) and 3-for-12 from three-point distance.

The biggest lead of the first half came when a Walsh three-pointer made it 27-22 late in the half. A trey by Riverhead’s Zy’Aire Pittman cut the Northport lead to 27-25 by halftime.

But the Tigers came out firing in the third quarter, opening the period on a 12-4 run for a 40-29 advantage.

“They’re tough and they got kids who stretch you,” Rossetti said. “They have kids who can shoot from Chicago.”

Northport expanded its lead to as many as 15 points twice in the fourth quarter when a Walsh three-pointer made it 58-43 and a steal and a layup by Melamerson made it 60-45.

“The first half we limited our turnovers,” Rossetti said. “The second half we had more turnovers and we were less aggressive.”

Cristian Pace led Riverhead with 16 points and Albert Daniels added 12. Quashiem Miller, who took a 20-point average into the game, had 11 points to go with 10 rebounds. Robert Tyre had nine points, six rebounds and five steals.

Rossetti and D’Eloia share a history. The two played against each other in high school when Rossetti wore Centereach’s uniform and D’Eloia played for Northport.

On Dec. 12, Northport edged Riverhead, 60-58, on a last-second basket. D’Eloia has seen enough of the Blue Waves to know that they have made strides.

“Riverhead is a tremendous team,” he said. “For them to have the record they have shows how tough our league is. I think they’re a playoff team and I wouldn’t want to face them in the playoffs.”

At the start of the day, Northport and Riverhead were two of seven teams in the nine-team league with league records of .500 or better.

“It’s a league where you can’t take a night off,” D’Eloia said. “It’s like the Big East in the old days.”

After the game, Rossetti declined to make players available for interviews.

“It happens,” he said of the loss to the Tigers, “but you have to give them credit. They took care of the basketball a little better than we did. Tonight they were the better team.”

Riverhead needs four wins from its seven remaining regular-season games in order to clinch a playoff berth.

What was the message Rossetti wanted to convey to his players?

“Keep their heads up,” he said, “keep believing in each other, keep working hard and stick together because I believe in all of these kids right now.”

bliepa@timesreview.com

Photo caption: Riverhead senior forward Robert Tyre exchanges a high-five with junior varsity coach Brian Stark before Thursday night’s game in Northport. (Credit: Bob Liepa)

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Members of the Riverhead Business Improvement District Management Association debated whether to continue having the popular Halloween Festival and coffin race next fall in light of the pending resignation of executive director Diane Tucci, who organized that and other downtown events.

BIDMA President Stave Shauger said the Halloween Festival would be difficult to plan without an executive director. He said board members must decide where to try and hire another executive director or perhaps just an administrative assistance, who would handle “more of the basic stuff,” requiring the BIDMA members to do more of the work themselves.

Ms. Tucci was hired by the BIDMA in 2017 to handle much of the day-to-day operations of the BIDMA and to organize many of the downtown events the BIDMA sponsors.

Last year, she also took on the executive director position for the Riverhead Chamber of Commerce after that organization’s executive director stepped down for health reasons.

She said she is staying on with the Chamber but stepping down from the BIDMA position.

Ms. Tucci also owns a marketing company called Main Street Agency, which is based in downtown Riverhead. She said she will still be available to help with the BIDMA when needed and that, as a downtown business owner, she could someday become a BIDMA board member herself.

The Halloween Festival originated in 2014 as the Edgar Allan Poe Festival, and the BIDMA contracted with an outside company to run that event. In 2016, the BIDMA took over the handling of the Halloween Festival itself, including the popular Halloween parade.

In 2017, it added the coffin races, an event Ms. Tucci had discovered in Colorado, and organized a similar event in Riverhead.

Last year’s coffin races were rained out, although the parade was pushed back a day and took place.

James Liszanckie, the co-owner of Sunny’s Riverhead Diner and Grill, urged the board not to drop the Halloween Festival. He said that while last year’s event was a bust due to rain, the year before was one of the best days his business has had due to the parade and coffin races.

“To just write it off would be a mistake,” he said. “Don’t let the weather scare you off. That was a great event.”

“Even with an executive director, there’s a crazy amount of work that goes into it,” Mr. Shauger said.

The Halloween Festival and Alive on 25 are basically the last two events run by the BIDMA, he said.

The Holiday Bonfire and parade is run by the Lions Club, while the Chamber of Commerce has taken more of a role in running the Cardboard Boat Races.

The BIDMA still helps with those events.

Alive on 25 last year had its opening night at the same time as the the Fourth of July fireworks (on July 3) and BIDMA members said that was a huge success. So much so, that they plan to do it again this year. The first Alive on 25 event is set for Wednesday, July 3, while the others are on the usual Thursday dates.

The Alive on 25 dates for this year are: July 3, July 18, Aug. 1 and Aug. 15. A rain date is Aug. 21.

tgannon@timesreview.com

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