(POMONA, NY) - On Tuesday, June 21, more than 180 Rockland County students set a new world record for most first pitches thrown simultaneously, prior to the Rockland Boulders 8-7 walk-off win over the New Jersey Jackals at Palisades Credit Union Park. The achievement comes just one week after Bergen, Westchester, and Orange County students broke the mark between a doubleheader with the Boulders and Miners on Tuesday, June 14.

The record was part of the "Read for the Rockland Boulders Record", powered by Active International and Scholastic Book Fairs. While not yet confirmed by Guinness, the 182 students who threw out the pitch this past Tuesday shatters the mark of 124 set by the same group last season. 

"This has become one of the signature moments of the season for us as an organization," said Shawn Reilly, Executive Vice President and General Manager. "We are so proud of all our participants and to be a motivating factor for so many young men and a women is a great feeling."

In total 2,586 students from 23 area schools read a combined 1,724,280 minutes, more than doubling the amount of participants from the 2015 campaign. Pine Tree Elementary in Monroe, New York (1,318 average minutes per student), Hempstead Elementary in Spring Valley, New York (933 average minutes per student), and Alice E. Grady Elementary in Elmsford, New York (875 average minutes per student) were the top three participating schools. Herbert Huachaca of the JFK School in Wayne, New Jersey was the top overall reader with a total of 9,048 minutes read.

To learn more about how your child or school can compete in the 2017 "Read for the Rockland Boulders Record", click here or contact Karen McCombs at kmccombs@rocklandboulders.com.