PURCHASE, N.Y. - For the second consecutive day, the Purchase College baseball team split a pair of contests with its Skyline Conference rival, Manhattanville College.
The Valiants escaped in game one following an improbable comeback, winning 9-8. Then in game two,
Alex Miller's one-hit gem carried the Panthers to a 9-0 victory.
Miller (JR/Reno, NV) went six innings, tallying three strikeouts over the six-inning effort, before
Elijah Diaz (FR/Brooklyn, NY) finished off the win with a hitless seventh frame.
While Miller did his thing on the mound, the offense matched his performance with some impressive work of its own. The Panthers (2-2 overall, 1-2 Skyline) managed four runs in the first inning thanks to an RBI-single from
Drew Stabinsky (FR/Floral Park, NY) and couple of Manhatanville errors.
After two scoreless innings, Purchase got back into the scoring groove following a bases-loaded walk from
Dylan Flynn (SR/Smithtown, NY) and a pair of RBI-ground outs to make it 7-0.
The guests then added two more runs in the fifth inning to finish off the 9-0 win. In the victory,
James Shea (JR/Brooklyn, NY) recorded a hit, a stolen base, two walks and two runs scored.
While the nine runs in game two were impressive, it wasn't shocking after the Purchase bats came alive in game one. They started so hot in fact, that they actually scored the first eight runs of the contest.
The scoring began in the first inning following a bases-loaded walk from
Matthew Mulligan (SR/Yaphank, NY). After an error let two runs score in the third, Purchase added three more runs in the fourth to make it 7-0, as Mulligan and
Josh Ferro (SR/Queens, NY) tallied RBI-singles and Flynn scored on a fielder's choice.
The guests then capped off their scoring flurry with an RBI-single from Flynn in the top of the fifth to make it 8-0.
At that point, Purchase looked like it would cruise to an easy win, but Manhattanville had other ideas. Once the bottom half of the fifth frame began, the Valiants (2-2, 2-1 Skyline) played like a team reborn, putting up seven runs to cut the deficit to 8-7.
Two innings later, Manhattanville snatched the lead away with a pair of runs. The Panthers had the eighth and ninth innings to respond, but weren't able to get a baserunner on in either.
Flynn led the way in game one with three hits, while Shea, Ferro and
James May (JR/Floral Park,NY) added two hits apiece.
On the mound,
Alex Doskoez (JR/Eastport, NY) started and went 4.1 innings, allowing four runs on three hits.
Jemal Betances (JR/Bronx, NY) was tagged with the loss after giving up the winning runs in relief.
Up next for the Panthers is a week of rest before they host St. Joseph's College-Long Island for a doubleheader on March 20th. First pitch is scheduled for 11 a.m. and you can follow along live with Live Stats and Live Video.