In its 52nd year, the Port Youth Activities (PYA) baseball program is still going strong. With the intramural program coming to an end, travel-league baseball will keep the ball rolling. The in-house baseball league ranges from kindergarten through seventh grade and consisted of 48 teams during this spring season. The travel summer league, which goes from ages eight to 14U, will consist of 11 teams and will be starting soon.
PYA’s objective is to provide athletic programs for boys and girls. They offer 18 different sports. It is an inexpensive way for children in Port Washington to participate in many different youth sports. Because of the variety of sports to choose from, many kids tend to play multiple sports within the program. While there are five public elementary schools in the district, the PYA program meshes the entire community together. This gives its participants an opportunity to form friendships before meeting up at Weber Middle School.
“The baseball program at PYA is the largest,” said first-year Program Director Brandon Kurz. “Long Island is a hotbed for baseball.”
Baseball has and continues to be the most popular sport played at PYA. The only sport that comes close to its baseball program is the basketball program. “The tradition of PYA has long been known to be a premier baseball and basketball program,” said Kurz. “It’s a fun place to be. The kids love it and the parents love it too.”
Under the direction of 22-year PYA Executive Director Ronnie Henderson and Kurz, PYA is going strong at Lion’s Field and is always looking to continue improving all of its youth programs.
“All are welcomed,” said Kurz. “All the kids in the community can latch on to this program and make it their own. That’s what we take pride in and love about it.”
To find out more about summer baseball and other PYA programs, go to www.pyasports.org. A new PYA website will be launched in July.
