by Andy Smith
Pierson captures the Suffolk VI Championship with a 5-4 win over Southold – they will face Wheatley on Sunday in the Long Island Championship pic.twitter.com/EH0FQ8SHwJ
Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) June 18, 2021
Pierson High School of Sag Harbor took on all competition last season finishing 13-5 in league play and 15-8 overall. Pierson reached the Class C County Championship before losing to Port Jefferson two games to one.
6th year Head Coach Jonathan Schwartz reflected on last season and what lessons were learned. Last year we had 6 seniors, so although Port Jefferson had more firepower than us, our experience took us farther than maybe we should have gone. We were a scrappy team, built on pitching, catching and speed. We relied on getting guys on, over and in, and had to execute well to win close games.
Schwartz, a Ward Melville alumni and who played college ball at Brandeis University continued, Unfortunately, one of our best players, our CF and leadoff hitter, Dominick Mancino, was out of the lineup during the playoffs with a freak injury, which really hurt us. He catches every ball in center field and with him, we will need to tighten up our defense this year even more to finish those closely contested games.
Pierson enters the season having lost graduating seniors, Reed Kelsey, Vincent Cavaniola, Dan Labrozzi, Brendan Burke and Charlie Culver. None of these athletes pursued college baseball. As a result, Pierson has to fill one to two outfield spots, first base and two starting pitching spots, which were occupied by Labrozzi and Kelsey, the teams top arms from last season.
However, Pierson has a strong foundation of players and they will be counted on to take a step up this season.
First, Gavin Gilbride will be Piersons rock behind the plate, according to Schwartz. The senior catcher has the strongest arm on the team, and was rarely challenged last year on the base paths. He has a potent bat, which will be in the middle to the top of the lineup, and improved every game last season.
Gilbride, who is entering his third varsity season finished last year with an average of .362, 19 RBI, and 20 SB.
Shortstop Christian Pantina, who has been a member of the varsity team since eighth grade will serve as the anchor and leader of the infield. Pantina, a line drive hitter, will be at the top of the lineup once again and adds a very strong defensive arm as well.
Outfielder Max Krotman entering his second varsity season came on strong in his debut. He finished with a .489 average, and is recognized as a strong hitter from the left side of the plate.
Coach Schwartz emphasized the resources at pitching the team possesses. Right now, I would say our strength is our pitching depth. I’ve never had so many impressive, quality arms on one team before. It’s unclear who our “ace” will be, but we have a plethora of young, talented pitchers, ready to take the next step, (including 2 lefties).
Schwartz continued, It’s difficult to say what the rotation will be right now. The only returning starter is Mancino, who will absolutely get innings.
Mancino pitched 24 innings to a 2.01 ERA.
“However, Dom is also the starting point guard of the basketball team, and might potentially need some extra time to make sure his arm is properly conditioned before throwing any high amount of pitches.
Schwartz added, Luckily, as I previously stated, it seems like we have tons of options to fill the void if need be to get us through March.
Juniors Nathan Dee and Mason Wheeler, and sophomores Andy Wayne, Paul Roesel, Braeden Mott and Lucas Lulo are all in play to compete for starting roles as of now. Things will become more clear as we begin to scrimmage this spring.
Many talented freshmen have had the opportunity to practice and train with the varsity team in the offseason. At this time, it wouldn’t be right to comment about their placement this season until we have a better feeling of where our needs will be and how the roster is going to shake out, Schwartz said.
Schwartz noted, It is certainly possible that we will have a freshman on our roster come the end of March.
Coach Schwartz continued, Although we lost 6 seniors from last season, I’m extremely optimistic about our group this year, and feel like we have as good of a chance as anyone to win our county, which is always the goal. Some of the other teams around the league lost a couple of game-changing players, who will be impossible to replace. Although we also lost some great players, I feel like we have a great group of younger players coming in who will be able to contribute, and make a big splash right away.
Sometimes in a smaller school, you don’t always have a roster full of true “baseball guys”, who play during the summer, swing and throw in the off-season, etc. This year, I can truly say we have a packed roster of “baseball guys”, who really love the game. That excites me.
When asked if there is a particular game that he had circled on the team calendar, Schwartz instead said that he is looking forward to their first intrasquad scrimmage, to see how his players perform in a live setting.
Schwartz concluded, It’s going to be a fun season helping these kids grow as competitive baseball players and quality young men, which is ultimately what it’s all about.