Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’s series
by Max Edelman
Here is the Gamechanger player of the game…..Jayden Gigante.
Gigante went 4-5 breaking the 4-4 tie in the fourth to give his team the lead, 6-4. pic.twitter.com/i9NWeduZwC
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 8, 2024
In a year leading a team with plenty of star power, Carey Seahawks head coach Doug Robins, who is entering his eighth year leading the Seahawks, looked back on what was a strong season in 2025.
“We had a good year number wise.” Robins said. “We went 19-7, but we lost in the semifinals to Bellmore JFK for the second year in a row. We played well. We pitched well, we hit well and we started a lot of underclassmen. We had some big years from guys.”
Every season sees a group of players graduate and leave to play college baseball elsewhere. At the top of that list for Carey is Jacob Daddino, Daddino shined in his senior year for the Seahawks, and made the All-State team. Daddino is now playing at Queens College.
“He was our number one pitcher.” Robins said. “He batted fourth and had a really great year. He was hitting over .600 for most of the season.”
Daddino isn’t the only member of last year’s Carey team to go on to college baseball. Nick Taranto, who started at second base last year, is now playing at Magnus Albertus, a Division-III school in New Haven C.T.
In terms of returning players, there is one name that always stands out for Carey. Entering his fifth year as a starter for the team, Jayden Gigante. Gigante has been committed to St. John’s for the last two years, and was All-County the past two seasons as well. He batted .383 with 29 hits on the year.
“He’s our dude.” Robins said. “He plays center field and bats second. He holds the record for hits at Carey high school. He broke the record last year. He’s our big guy, and he’s looking to add to it.
Also an All-County player, Robins is expecting a big year from Tristan Hickis. Hickis, a junior, is entering his fourth year as a varsity starter. Hickis serves as one of the top pitchers on the Carey staff, as well as slotting in at first base. Hickis is committed to Hofstra. He went 5-1 with a 1.65 ERA and 75 Ks over 46.1 innings. He also batted .338 with 22 hits.
Tristan Hickis (Carey 2026) shows off his breaking ball to get the strikeout. pic.twitter.com/6q5d4XhpUQ
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) June 28, 2024
“He played really well for us last year on both sides of the field.” Robins said. “He’s our main pitcher.”
At the hot corner, Robins is looking forward to seeing how senior Mark Vera concludes his high school career. Outside of playing third, Vera also comes out of the bullpen, and serves as one of the team’s relievers. Vera batted .352 with 32 hits and was named All-Conference.
In the outfield, Ryan Kunkel, who is committed to play at SUNY Old Westbury, will look to find time both in the outfield and on the mound this year. Robins also has high hopes for senior Mark Agostino. A lefty, Agostino features both as a pitcher, and in the outfield.
“Mike is going to be one of our lefty pitchers and played right field for me last year.” Robins said. “He’s a really good defensive player with good speed and good pop. He’s a really good athlete and a great kid.”
At shortstop, Joncarlo Carbone is set to take part in his third season on the varsity team.
“He’s real fast.” Robins said. “He covers a lot of ground and is great defensively. We’re expecting him to hit for us and be a big part of what we want to do offensively.”
When asked to pick out a strength, Robins believes that rather than one specific area that stands out, his team will be well rounded, and play both sides of the ball well.
“Our strength is going to be our offense.” Robins said. “Our strength is going to be our defense and our athletic ability to steal bases. We’re going to put the ball in play and we’ve got some guys who can really swing it. We’ve got some good defenders, and guys who have been in big game situations over the last few years.”
