Box Score

Bronx, NY (Mar. 21, 2012) – The Panthers ran into a red-hot baseball team Wednesday on the road. Host Lehman College edged Purchase 5-4 at the South Field and is now 5-1 on the season.

Lehman is just two wins away from surpassing its win total of six in 2011. The Lightning's Stephen Valdes doubled in a run in the first, but Purchase came right back in the top of the second with two runs on a double by Kevin McQuade (SR/Mamaroneck, NY) and a sacrifice fly by John Duffy (SO/Staten Island, NY). 

Lehman had a big opportunity in its half of the second when it loaded the bases with no one out on a double by Freddy Parra, a single by David Painter and a walk by Socrates Peralta, but ultimately came away with only one run when Michael Liang's chopper eluded Duffy at shortstop.

The Panthers then had their own bases loaded chance in the third.  After allowing a single, a walk, a sacrifice bunt and another walk, Lightning starter Wilfredo Gonzalez beared down to escape the jam.

Lehman regained the lead in the third and added two more runs in the fifth and sixth on run-scoring singles by Painter and Valdes to open up a 5-2 advantage.

After some solid work in the middle innings, Gonzalez went back out for the eighth, but ran out of steam, allowing the first two hitters to reach.

The Panthers got to Lehman's bullpen and nearly captured another come-from-behind win. A run scoring double by Leo Francisco (SO/Bedford Hills, NY) cut the Lightning lead to 5-3.   

Duffy came to the plate with two on and hit a smash to Peralta, who made a nifty stop and nearly turned a  4-6-3 double play to end the inning if not for Duffy's hustle down the line to beat the throw from Almonte to first. The play allowed Mark Donahue (SR/Brookhaven, NY) to score, further cutting the Lehman lead.

Reliever Aneudi Garcia managed to get out of the inning when Almonte made a shoe-string catch of on a smash off the bat of pinch-hitter Jay Ruiz (FR/Bronx, NY).

The Panthers put on a runner on in the ninth, but couldn't push the run across.

Three Panthers finished with two hits apiece, including Frank Fiumara* (SR/Port Chester, NY), Robert Robles (FR/Bronx, NY) and Michael Sarni (JR/Shelton, CT). Duffy led the way with two RBI. Francisco and Fiumara accounted for the other two RBIs.

-Lehman Sports Information Contributed to this report