Riverhead varsity softball eyeing another championship

Coming off of their first Suffolk County championship in school history, the Riverhead varsity softball team is coming into this season with the mindset to repeat. It’s no longer a fight to get relevant — it’s a fight to remain consistent. 

“We come in every year with the expectation to win,” Riverhead head coach Rich Vlacci Jr. said. “We’ve instilled it into our culture that we’re going to be a team that will compete year in and year out no matter who is in the pitcher’s circle or batter’s box. We are a team that is going to set the standard for what it means to be a good program.”

Though many key pieces have returned, Riverhead will be without its All-State pitcher and middle-of-the-lineup bruiser, Mya Marelli, who graduated last year. The lefty hurler pitched to a 9-1 record, striking out 130 batters over 72.2 innings. She produced an ERA of 1.349 over the course of the season. But it’s the next-man-up mentality for Riverhead, and Vlacci Jr. believes he has plenty of ammunition to make another run.

“Yes, Mya was a major part of our success last year, but she was also coming back off an injury and didn’t play half the season,” Vlacci Jr said. “Thirteen of our wins last year were without Mya pitching. So realistically, it’s just a reminder to our girls that yes, we lost our best player, but we still have something special. I feel like we lost our best player the year before in Kaysee [Mojo] as well, and ended up winning a championship last year. You lose pieces, but you also gain new pieces at the same time.”

Being in that environment and finding a way to win on the biggest stage is invaluable for the key returners from last year’s team. 

Adriana Martinez, who batted .426 last season with 29 runs scored, 23 RBIs and 13 stolen bases, returns for her senior year at the shortstop position she’s held since her 8th-grade season. Jordyn Kwasna, another All-State selection, enters her senior year after batting .486 and cracking three home runs to go along with her 26 RBI.

Madison Saladino, a junior, will be behind the plate this season after batting .419 with 34 runs scored. Sophia Viola, another junior, hit for a .400 average and drove in 23 runs. Not to mention freshman sensation Morgan Gajowski, who got her first taste of varsity ball last year and batted .333 for the season.

The talent returning is more than enough to make the team competitive, and the next group of players has been brought up as they look to make an immediate impact on the varsity level. Vlacci Jr. will have two 9th graders and two 8th graders on the team this year.

Eden Greenwood, the other 9th grader, got major playing time down the stretch last season and figures to be a major contributor this year. New 8th-grade faces include first baseman Kennedy Schumejda and second baseman Karlie Nohejl. 

“All of our younger players are well beyond their years,” Vlacci Jr. said. “They belong here. They work extremely hard. We don’t have as much expectations for them right now. It’s more about getting their feet wet. The 8th graders just need to get used to the speed of the game. I want them to learn, watch, and grow. They have great role models to look to.”

Hitting-wise, the Blue Waves didn’t lose much. The big question is how they will piece together a pitching staff to give them the best chance at winning games. With Marelli’s slow return from injury last year, two pitchers held down the fort: sophomore Amber Farruggia and freshman Braedyn MacLeod. They return a year older with plenty of experience to take into the season. 

Farrugia got the bulk of the time on the circle with 43.2 innings pitched and produced an ERA of 4.00. MacLeod had a much smaller sample size with 20.2 innings pitched, but kept the runners off the scoreboard with a 2.032 ERA. MacLeod, however, is still recovering from knee surgery in the summer and is slowly ramping up her production.

“We need our pitchers to basically throw strikes and allow our defense to make plays behind them,” Vlacci Jr. said. “We broke the school runs scored record last year, scoring over 200 runs. We’re going to be an offensive juggernaut again this year. We just need the pitchers to keep us in the games, and the rest will take care of itself.”