HCBL June 24, 2026 Recaps
Riverhead 15, Sag Harbor 5 (6.5 Innings)
The Riverhead Tomcats continued their offensive surge, defeating the Sag Harbor Whalers 15-5 on Wednesday at Mashashimuet Park.
After two scoreless innings, Riverhead broke the game open in the top of the third. Thomas Iaquinto (Felician) got the rally started with a two-run single to center field that scored Matt Gileno (Riverside City College) and Kevin Schnupp (UMass Amherst). Later in the inning, Evan Schickler (Rider) delivered an RBI single to plate Iaquinto before Matt Hesselbirg (Mercy) launched a two-run home run, giving the Tomcats a commanding 5-0 lead.
Sag Harbor answered with a run in the bottom half of the third when Ethan Righter (Hamilton) singled to left field, scoring Hudson Meyer (Oswego State) to cut the deficit to 5-1.
The Whalers continued to chip away in the fourth inning. Eddie Morrissey (St. Lawrence) drew a bases-loaded walk to force home Nicholas Banner (Tufts), and a Riverhead error later in the inning allowed Tim McGrath (Tufts) to score, trimming the Tomcats’ lead to 5-3.
Riverhead responded immediately with a four-run fifth inning. Dylan Kennedy-Fujah (UMass Boston) and Schnupp each drew bases-loaded walks to force in runs before Gileno delivered a two-run double to right field, extending the lead to 9-3. Sag Harbor managed to get one run back in the bottom of the inning when Milo Suarez (Dartmouth) scored on a catcher’s error, making it 9-4.
The Tomcats continued to pile on in the sixth. Adrian Tavarez (St. John’s) doubled to left-center to score Zach DeMilt (Adelphi) before Gileno came through again with a two-run single, driving home Kennedy-Fujah and Tavarez to push the lead to 12-4. Sag Harbor answered with a solo home run from Collin Harty (Nichols), but the Whalers still trailed 12-5.
Riverhead put the game out of reach in the seventh inning. Schickler doubled to left field to score Iaquinto, Hesselbirg followed with an RBI single that plated DeMilt, and Schickler later scored on a wild pitch to complete the scoring at 15-5 as the game ended via the mercy rule. Joshua Lubell who started on the mound for Riverhead and pitched the first five innings earned the win.
The Tomcats’ offense was powered by a balanced attack throughout the lineup. Gileno finished with four RBI, while Hesselbirg drove in three runs, highlighted by his third-inning two-run homer. It marked the sixth consecutive game for Hesselbirg with at least two RBI going back to June 17th. Hesselbirg now is hitting .481 for the Tomcats with three home runs and 20 RBI.
Shelter Island 5, Westhampton 2
The Shelter Island Bucks snapped their eight-game losing streak beating the Westhampton Aviators by a final score of 5-2 in front of the home crowd at Fiske Field.
Sam Bradford (UMass Dartmouth) got the scoring started with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the third. Westhampton would take the lead in the top of the fourth scoring two runs on a sacrifice fly by Oliver Kwan (Wesleyan) and an RBI single from Luke Rizzi (American International) to lead 2-1.
The Bucks regained the lead in the bottom of the fourth as Sam Ametrano (Quinnipiac) tied the game with an RBI single and then took the lead when JD Stemhagen (Dickinson) scored on a wild pitch.
The Bucks took control of the game in the sixth getting a pair of insurance runs on an RBI double from Stemhagen and a sacrifice fly by Ametrano.
Sam Lowenstein (Colby) earned the win for Shelter Island going five innings allowing two runs and five hits with three strikeouts and two walks. Xavier Hall (Emerson) pitched the last two innings to get the save.
North Fork 14, Southampton 3 (5 Innings)
The North Fork Ospreys offense scored 14 runs against the Southampton Breakers on Wednesday, highlighted by a seven-run fifth inning.
Ian Vertucci (Felician) highlighted the North Fork offense going 3-for-3 with a pair of runs scored and four RBI. Manny Carreras (Post) was 3-for-3 with three RBI at the plate and two runs scored.
Logan Pulitano (Post) pitched a five-inning complete game to improve his record on the season to 2-1.