PURCHASE, N.Y. - For the first time in over a year, the Purchase College baseball team took to the field to face another squad in head-to-head action.

It was a surreal moment for the players, coaches and staff this morning, as athletics returned to campus. With all the struggles of the last year due to COVID-19 and the cancellation of the 2020 spring, fall and winter seasons, playing baseball was not a guarantee in 2021.

But with the dedication of our student-athletes, staff, campus leaders and the entire Skyline Conference, it became a reality today. And we are so glad it did, because the Panthers of Purchase College and the Valiants of Manhattanville College put on a show during the doubleheader!

Manhattanville tasted victory first, as the guests took game one by the score of 3-1. But in game two, after some back-and-forth action, the Panthers prevailed in 10 innings, 7-6, on a walk-off single from freshman Isaac Reyes (East Islip, NY). 

Before Reyes got his chance, the Panthers loaded the bases to start the bottom of the 10th on back-to-back singles from Matthew Mulligan (JR/Yaphank, NY) and James May (JR/Floral Park, NY), before Max Vera (JR/Bethpage, NY) was hit to load the bases. 

After taking a first-pitch ball, Reyes won the game when he hit a little dribbler up the first base line. The ball was traveling just slow enough to make the first baseman work faster than he wanted too, which lead to a high throw to home plate. As the catcher jumped into the air to field the attempt, Mulligan was already sliding across the plate to secure the contest for Purchase. 

The win was a great cap off to the afternoon, as the Panthers led twice in the game before taking the win.

After the Valiants opened the scoring with a pair of runs in the third inning, the hosts responded with three runs of their own in the bottom half of the frame. All three runs came on RBI-singles from James Shea (JR/Brooklyn, NY), Dylan Flynn (SR/Smithtown, NY) and Josh Ferro (Queens, NY).

Ferro added another run in the fifth via a bases-loaded groundout to push the lead to 4-2. However, the guests responded by scoring three runs over the sixth and seventh innings to retake the lead, 5-4.

It was short lived though, as Purchase snatched the advantage right back in the bottom of the seventh with two runs. Shea and Flynn again provided the firepower with an RBI-single and RBI-double, respectively. 

Manhattanville then tied things up in the eight inning at 6-6 with a sacrifice fly, before Reyes won the contest in the 10th.

On the mound, Ryan Kozersky (SR/Mount Kisco, NY) pitched a good game despite the no decision result. He went six innings, allowing five runs (two earned) on just five hits, as errors hampered him all day. He also recorded three strikeouts to just one walk. 

After Kozersky departed, Ryan Castrataro (SO/Mahopac, NY) came in to throw two innings. The sophomore allowed one unearned run on three hits.

Finally, Michael Laskowski (SR/Floral Park, NY) emerged victorious for Purchase, after tossing two-scoreless innings to closeout the game.

At the plate, Flynn continued to be the offensive lighting rod he has been throughout his entire career, as he finished with a game-high three hits. May and Shea each knocked in a pair of hits, while the latter tallied three stolen bases in the win.

For Manhattanville, the guests used five pitchers in the defeat, including Nick Carita (JR/Levittown, NY). Carita picked up the loss for the Valiants, despite recording five strikeouts over just 2.1 innings of work. 

While the Valiants suffered defeat in the second contest, they got to enjoy an opening-day win earlier in the afternoon, as they cruised to a 3-1 result.

In the much lower scoring affair, Manhattanville tallied the three runs during the third and fifth innings, before Reyes got Purchase on the board in the bottom of the fifth with an RBI-single to right field. 

From there, the Panthers battled back in the sixth and seventh innings by getting base runners on in each frame, as the Valiants managed to hold off the effort.

On the mound, Cody Hennequin (SR/Mitford, CT) was tagged with the loss for Purchase. He went 4.2 innings after allowing three runs on six hits. Justin Doskoez (FR/Eastport, NY) made a promising collegiate debut in relief of Hennequin, as the freshman tossed 2.1 innings of hitless baseball.

As for the Valiants, their two pitchers, Matthew Messina (SO/New Rochelle, NY) and Luke Shaffer (SR/Monroe, CT) combined for three-hitter as the latter earned the win. 

Up next for the two squads is another doubleheader, this time at Manhattanville. First pitch for game one is set for noon tomorrow (3/13). Make sure you follow along with Live Stats.