Basketball preview: Riverhead and SWR teams look to start season strong

Michael Hejmej — Mon, 24 Nov 2025 19:55:51 +0000

As the weather inches toward freezing, local sports will head indoors, abandoning the gridiron for the hardwood. In this year’s basketball preview, we’ll take a look at some potential storylines across Riverhead and Shoreham-Wading River.

Riverhead Boys Basketball

(Bill Landon photo)

Head Coach: Pat Fabian (second year)

Last Season: [12-10], (8-4 League I), Second round playoff exit

Key Returnees: Peter Lagnena, 12, shooting guard; Anaiis Mitchell, 11, point guard; Landon Zaleski, 11, forward

Key Losses: Deshawn Watkins, Liam Lennon

First Game: Thursday, Dec. 4: Ward Melville at Riverhead, 4:30 p.m.

The Riverhead boys basketball team, fresh off their first playoff berth since 2019, look to continue their ascent in League I. Pat Fabian’s first year at the helm was a successful one, as Riverhead was able to defeat Commack, 48-47, in the first round of the playoffs to bring excitement back to Riverhead sports.

Riverhead Girls Basketball

(Credit: Bill Landon file photo)

Head Coach: Kevin Ghigliotti (second year)

Last Season: [8-8], (4-8 League I), missed playoffs

Key Returnees: Kyleigh Lennon, 12, center; Adriana Martinez, 12, guard; Jordyn Kwasna, 12, guard

Key Losses: Logan Pilon, Brooke Andresen

First Game: Tuesday, Dec. 2: Riverhead at Westhampton Beach, 4:30 p.m.

The Riverhead girls basketball team came out of the gates last season scorching hot, with a 4-0 record before heading into a very tough League I schedule. Their 8-8 final record was a major move forward for a program that had only five wins total in the previous two years combined.

Though they lost top scorer Logan Pilon to graduation, the Blue Waves have plenty of returning talent to compete this season. Adriana Martinez has been a stalwart on the team for years. She’s entering her fifth year on the varsity team and will look to lead the team to the playoffs.

SWR Boys Basketball

(Credit: Bill Landon file photo)

Head Coach: Kevin Culhane (18 years)

Last Season: [10-10] (5-9 League VI), missed playoffs

Key Returnees: Zach Makarewicz, 11, guard; Tyler Lievre, 10, guard; Max Boerum, 12 forward; Carter Baumeister, 12 forward; James Cook, 12, guard

Key Losses: Dylan McClelland, Jack McInnis

First Game: Friday, Dec. 5: Westhampton Beach at Shoreham-Wading River, 6:30 p.m.

“Out of all the years I’ve coached here, I think this team may have one of the best in terms of talent,” coach Kevin Culhane said in the summer. “I’ve had some great teams, but if we can put it together like I think we could, we might have a special year and surprise a few teams.”

The Wildcats can score with the best of them. Any one of their starting five is capable of making a major contribution on the scoreboard. They’ll rely on the hot hand on a game-by-game basis.

SWR Girls Basketball

Head Coach: Chris Coster (first year)

Last Season: [18-2] (14-2 League VI), Suffolk County Class A Semifinals Loss

Key Returnees: Kady Keegan, 12, guard; Anabel Keegan, 12, forward; Shealyn Varbero, 11, guard; Leslie Jablonski, 12, guard

Key Losses: Alyssa Bell, Grayce Kitchen, Morgan Lesiewicz

First Game: Thursday, Dec. 4: Mattituck at Shoreham-Wading River, 4 p.m.

For the first time in two decades, Shoreham-Wading River girls varsity coach Adam Lievre will no longer be on the sidelines. Lievre coached the team to the school’s first Suffolk County championship in 2023 and was close to winning another in subsequent years. He decided to step away from the team to spend more time with his two sons — one of whom (Tyler) plays on the boys varsity team. Chris Coster steps into a polished program and will try to continue the legacy Lievre leaves behind.

Losing one of their best scorers, Alyssa Bell, to graduation, the Wildcats will need to fill the scoring gap left behind to remain competitive. Shoreham-Wading River always retools and rebuilds year after year. Their athletes always shine when the lights are the brightest.

The post Basketball preview: Riverhead and SWR teams look to start season strong appeared first on Riverhead News Review.

Wildcats fall in semis to end hard-fought girls basketball season

Michael Hejmej — Fri, 07 Mar 2025 11:00:00 +0000

After winning League VI and notching 18 wins, the Shoreham-Wading River girls basketball team’s season came to an end in the Suffolk County Class A semifinals against a team that dealt them one of their only losses during the regular season. In a back-and-forth match, the Wildcats lost 46-40 against No. 4 Islip Monday night at Centereach High School. It was a tough way to end the season after earning the No. 1 seed in the tourney.

The momentum was all Shoreham-Wading River from the opening tip, as Grayce Kitchen connected on three triples in the first quarter – the last of which hit every part of the rim before falling in as the buzzer sounded. The Wildcats were hitting their shots and kept Islip off the board to the tune of a 14-8 lead heading into the second quarter.

But that’s when things changed. Islip’s Riley Moran, who averaged 10.5 points per game this season, started to erupt. Everything that left her fingertips, from any part of the court, ripped through the net. Moran simply put her team on her back, scoring 29 of Islip’s 46 points.

“Moran is a great player,” SWR head coach Adam Lievre said. “As far as I know, that’s the best game she’s ever had. Have to give her credit. She made big shot after big shot.”

The 29 points was a career-high — and she picked a great time to do it.

Lievre made some defensive changes going into the third quarter and SWR held Islip scoreless for the first five minutes of the second half. The Buccaneers scored only five points the whole quarter. SWR was coming up with steals left and right but unfortunately, the turnovers weren’t turning into many points, as the Wildcats scored just nine, preventing them from pulling away.

“I think us going into a shooting rut in the third quarter was the difference maker in the game,” Lievre said. “We missed a bunch of easy ones that I felt like we should have had. We went cold from three-point range and not scoring more when we had the opportunity hurt our confidence and it carried into the fourth quarter.”

But even with Moran’s lights out shooting , SWR fought back and took a five point lead in the final frame thanks to Alyssa Bell and Kady Keegan who scored 11 and nine points, respectively. Kitchen hit a trey in that fourth quarter as well to finish with a team-high 15 points.

In the final minutes of the game, the Wildcats went ice cold. Behind Moran, Islip went on an 11-0 run to end the game and send them into the Suffolk County Class A final against No. 2 Mt. Sinai.

“Tough to win big games when you go minutes without scoring,” Lievre said. “When you miss easy shots it kind of piles up. When we needed big shots, we didn’t hit them. They did. That was the difference.”

Lievre has been mulling retirement for the past few seasons, but now the only coach in school history to bring home a girls basketball Suffolk County championship has officially called it quits. He undoubtedly left his mark on the program.

“We went 18-3 this year. We were the league champions. It was an awesome season,” said Lievre, who plans to spend more time watching his sons play basketball. “It hurts to lose the last one but there’s a bigger picture in all of this, like all the memories we created this season. Yeah, this stings, but the fun times we had is something you can always look back on. This was a great group. I’ll definitely miss them.”