From PAL football to high school varsity softball, Riverhead is restructuring its athletics program from scratch. (Provided file photo)
A village is needed to turn the high school sports program around. You will need parents, community members, coaches and administrators. We all work together. Children need to buy it. It requires commitment, sacrifice and belief.
Riverhead High School Athletic Director Brian Sacks does whatever it takes to turn the ship right and bring it back to the level of competitiveness that has been striving to achieve the blue waves. 19 Pandemic. Due to the uncertainty in the air and the lack of sports to play, many of the school’s most experienced athletes have moved out of the district and the bag has been picking up the pieces all along.
Many of the varsity teams were caught up in underclass fielding. Also, some programs had little participation to equip the team at all. It was the lowest for Riverhead Sports, but things have been starting to look up recently, and that’s because the right people have come up to the plate.
“Even if everyone wants to say it, at the end of the day, it’s important to win,” Sachs said. “I think the last few years may have prevented kids from playing sports because of the losses we were doing. I’m not entirely sure, but we’re involved. The numbers are so bad they are finally back in full.”
The boys lacrosse team had a great season of all time last year, winning a playoff game. The softball team made school history and made it a perfect 18-0 in league play before losing in the Suffolk County semi-finals. The boys basketball team made the playoffs for the first time since 2019. This is evidence of people who were stuck and believed.
Rebuilds always start from scratch.
“When building a high school program, it’s a serious issue with the (area) youth program, and how their numbers are, how coaching, and how they influence students at those levels. It’s based on,” Sachs said. “That’s where it starts before you think about participating in school sports.”
Police Athletic League, which offers soccer, lacrosse, cheerleading and soccer, introduces children to young sports, age 5. Football has been successful at the PAL level with both the under-10 teams and the 11 under teams this season. The championship thanks to strong leadership. The Riverhead Little League is a pillar of the community and drives out district champions each year. There is also a travel baseball program like Riverhead waves that lead local kids to elite contests. Boys basketball head coach Patrick Fabian brings youth basketball back to Riverhead by earning a membership in Hampton’s Youth Athletic League, and is currently coaching girls and boys from third to sixth grade in offtime. Masu.
“Anyone who wanted to participate in our youth program, I was all a hearing,” Sachs said. “I provided facilities and I will do my best to help people with what I have to offer, whatever they need.”
A major change in middle school ranks is using coaches with a varsity level experience to better prepare players for the next level. Rafe Shay coaches the middle school football team along with Scott Huckal, a former high school coach who led Riverhead to multiple Suffolk County Championships. John Rossetti, who won the league title when he was in charge of Riverhead’s boys basketball team, has returned to coaching the Cagers in middle school. Cherese Foster, who was recently the Varsity Girls Basketball Coach, chose to descend and coach middle schools.
“You can’t get a girl to approach varsity without knowing how to do a layup,” Foster said months ago. “We need to do everything we can to get to these athletes as soon as possible. We shouldn’t teach the basics at the varsity level yet.”
To spread awareness and increase interest and participation, Erica Murphy and Quinn Alexander recently formed a new booster program called Riverhead Athletic Club, a nonprofit organization of 501-C.
“I’ve always been an avid sports fan personally,” Alexander said in a phone interview. “I grew up around track and field. I was a teacher and coach in three villages. I’ve been a coach at Ward Melville. I came out through Shoreham Athletics. All of these The location has a booster club and I felt that was something Riverhead lacked. I have three little kids in the district and everyone who joined the organization Bleeds Blue.”
He welcomed it with open arms as Murphy and Alexander approached the bag with an idea.
“Our biggest problem is attracting kids to try out sports at an early age,” Sachs said. “I think the booster club will help you communicate the language to the community. Show us the opportunity here and give your parents a place to ask for information.”
Alexander has short-term and long-term goals at the club. The first step is simply to start raising funds by saying words.
“We know there are clubs that support certain sports, but we want to be there for all the sports, all in full,” Alexander said. “In the end, I want to do youth sports camps. I want to be able to hand out scholarships to our best athletes. I want a Hall of Fame. Everyone here is committed to regaining Riverhead Sports. We all want to help.”
