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Athletics Northeast PA - Premier Sports Training Provider
208 Fifth Street, West Pittston, PA 18640
Information and Links
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Grind Training Staff
Rich Chiavacci
Bio: Ron Chiavacci
• Attended Lackawanna College
• Attended Kutztown University
• Drafted by Texas Rangers in 1996
• Drafted and signed by the Montreal Expos in 1998
• Played professional baseball for 12 years
• Pitcher for the Montreal Expos, Philadelphia Phillies, Houston Astros, Detroit Tigers, and Pittsburgh Pirates
• 2000 professional innings
• Member of the Korean Major leagues, KBO, for SK Wyverns
• Pitching coach for 27 years
Steve Sulcoski
Bio: Steve Sulcoski
• Professional Hitting Instructor and athletics performance strength and conditioning coach
• Specializes in player development training for baseball and softball
• Training baseball and softball players for 8 years
• Played DII and DIII for 4 years
• Played professionally in the Atlantic league, American Association, Can Am League, and Frontier League for 3 years
• Creator of Hitting Enlightenment online hitting instruction (followed by 23k via Instragram)
• Developed bat speeds of 90 mph via Blast Motion Technology with balled ball velocities consistently over 100 mph
• Uses cutting edge technology to provide real time feedback to promote better performance and better results
• Member of the Blue Mountain League in the summer (18 doubles, .479 average, 6 home runs, 33 RBI’s, 1,420 OPS in 2023)
Chris Kroski
Bio: Chris Kroski
• Pittston native who grew up playing in the local little league
• Attended St. Petersburg Junior College in Petersburg Florida
• Drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 2002 MLB draft
• Played at Triple A level for the Seattle Mariners and Cincinnati Reds for 8 Years
• Coached for Fryeburg Academy Baseball and Kennet High School Varsity Softball for 8 combined years
• Coached 16U and 18U travel baseball
• Coached 12U and 14U travel softball
• Focused on developing young athletes and teaching them the fundamentals of the game.
Karissa Kross
Bio: Karissa Kross
• Graduated from Wyoming Area High School in 2009
• Played at East Stroudsburg University, Misericordia University, and King’s College
• Established as one of the top players in the Wyoming Valley Conference
• Graduated from King’s College with a successful athletic career. 2 time MAC Conference All-Academic team selection
• Helps young athletes learn the intricacies of pitching to get to the next level of competition
Dennis Smeding
Bio: Dennis
• Grind Softball – Head of Player Development
PJ Pisano
Bio: PJ Pisano
• 3 year Varisty Assistant Coach/Outfield Coach for Pittston Area High School
• Manager for Pittston Area Legion 2022
• Head Coach and Head Fielding instruction at Grind Athletics
Ashley Walsh
Bio: Ashley Walsh
• 2017 graduate of Holy Cross High School
• 1st Team All-region, Division III Lackawanna League Softball Coaches All-Star
• DII Concordia College as a pitcher
• Ranked 4th in conference for ERA in the 2021 season
• Graduated from Concordia College in 2021 with a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice and a minor in Psychology
Joe Tomachick
Bio: Joe Tomachick
• 2007-2009 Member of Keystone College Baseball team
• 2012 Graduated from Keystone College with a degree in Sports and Recreation Management
• 2013 Coach of Moosic Mets 16u and 17u team. (Moosic Mets organization has 23 players drafted to the MLB and many reach the collegiate level).
• 2017 Assisted in the development of Jard Soloman who was drafted in the 11 round of the MLB draft, assisted East Stroudsburg pitching staff to a 4.29 ERA and 394 strikeouts
• 2019 Led Lackawanna College pitching staff to a 3.28 ERA in their conference, assisted team to the NJCAA DII World Series
• 2020-2021 Coached at East Stroudsburg University
Sam Parente
Bio: Sam Parente
• 4 letter winner at Pittston Area High School (All-conference as a junior and senior, 3 year team captain, .400 batting average in 3 out of 4 seasons)
• Attended and played at Lackawanna Junior College. 2 time first team All-region and 2 time All Northeast District, Northeast Defensive player of the year as freshman, finished with 14 home runs , 100 RBI, over .400 batting average.
• Attended and played at University of Pittsburgh
• Hitting coach at Lackawanna Junior College for 1 year.
• Current Assistant coach at Wyoming Area High School
Eli Riley
Bio: Eli Riley
• Attended Bloomsburg University and Lackawanna College
• 2023 All-PSAC First Team at Bloomsburg University
• April 2023 and May 2024 PSAC East Athlete of the Week
• 2024 CSC Baseball Academic All-District Team
• 2022 All-Region Team
• Led 13U Grind Athletics Baseball Team to a 25-5 record in Summer 2024
• Led 13U Grind Athletics Baseball Team to a 12-1 record in Fall 2023
• Focused on building strong fundamentals, improving strength and agility, and fostering competitor’s mindset
Jared Smigelski
Bio: Jared Smigelski
• Coach Smigelski has spent the past four seasons as the pitching coach at King’s College,
where he has played an integral role in developing the program’s pitching staff
Prior to his tenure at King’s, he honed his coaching skills with several travel teams and led
the pitching staffs at Hazleton High School and Hazleton Legion, each for a season. A former pitcher,
Coach Smigelski brings firsthand experience to his role,
having competed at Crestwood High School before playing four years of collegiate baseball at King’s College.
With a deep understanding of the game and a passion for mentoring young pitchers,
he is dedicated to helping athletes reach their full potential both on and off the field.
About Us
Mission Statement
Provide elite-level training in a supportive environment, helping athletes of all ages achieve their highest potential while instilling the values of discipline, integrity, and teamwork.
Travel Teams
Baseball U8 thru U16
Softball U8 thru U16
What we are about: Development