PURCHASE, N.Y. - The Purchase College softball team faced Skyline Conference rival St. Joseph's University-Brooklyn for a doubleheader on Friday afternoon and ultimately endured defeat in both contests.

The Blue and Orange now hold a 9-18 overall record, with a 5-9 standing in the conference, while the Bears improved to 21-11 and 11-5, respectively.

Game One: SJBK 8, Purchase 0  (6 inn)

The day commenced with a quiet start as both teams sought to find their rhythm. However, it was the visitors who struck first, notching two runs in the top of the third inning and adding another run in the top of the fourth.

Despite the Panthers' efforts to hold off the Bears, St. Joseph's seized the momentum in the top of the sixth inning, securing five runs with a well-timed double and triple, ultimately sealing the game 8-0 in their favor.

Tyler Salerno (FY/Kings Park, NY) and Melissa Harper (FY/Patchogue, NY) recorded the sole hits of the game for the Panthers.

On the mound, Samantha Christopher's (FY/North Babylon, NY) absorbed the loss, surrendering eight runs on 11 hits, with one strikeout.

Game Two: SJBK 9, Purchase 5 (8 inn)

As game two started, St. Joseph's struck first once more, carrying over their momentum from the first game, but Purchase was not ready to throw in the towel just yet. 

In the bottom of the second inning, the Blue and Orange surged ahead 2-1. Salerno reached base first, followed by Rebecca Bronzi, both advancing on a stolen base, before a powerful hit to left field from Allison Cammarata brought in the runners.

Although the Bears reclaimed the lead in the third inning, Purchase swiftly equalized as a triple from Christopher allowed Harper to score, leveling the score at 3-3.

The game remained closely contested, with the visitors pulling ahead in the fifth inning, only for Christopher's double in the bottom of the inning to bring in Harper, narrowing the gap to 5-4.

Trailing by one entering into the sixth inning, Purchase dug deep to hold St. Joseph's to five runs before Rebecca Bronzi (JR/Lagrangeville) capitalized on errors to tie the score, 5-5.

With neither team breaking the deadlock in the seventh, the game extended into extra innings. Unfortunately, the Panthers had to pull Olivia Goff (FY/Syracuse,NY) off the mound due to a shoulder injury. 

Despite a valiant effort from the Blue and Orange, the Bears hit hard, resulting in four runs, which ended the game 9-5.

Notably, Harper went 2-for-2 at bat while Cammarata recorded three RBI's.

Up next, the Panthers face a quick turnaround as they travel to Farmingdale State College for a doubleheader matchup on May 4th starting at noon.