Despite scoring first in both games, the Panthers baseball team was overwhelmed in a doubleheader loss at Erie Community College Thursday, falling by scores of 16-1 and 20-5. Tompkins Cortland is now 0-8 and 0-4 in the West Division. Erie is 11-8 overall and 4-0 in division.

Game One: Erie 16, Tompkins Cortland 1  

Frank Marra (Millstone Township, N.J./Allentown) led off the game with a triple and came in to score on a groundout by Dan Mrowinski (Syracuse/Solvay H.S.), putting the Panthers up 1-0. The good feelings from the early lead didn't last long as Erie scored five times in the bottom of the first and ten more in the second. By the time the Panthers were retired in the fifth inning, the score was 16-1 and the game was called due to the run rule.

Jason Winstanley (Lewiston/Lewiston-Porter H.S.) went 2-for-2 at the plate in game one.

Game Two: Erie 20, Tompkins Cortland 5

The Panthers came out quick again in game two, scoring the first run of the game in the top of the first. After Erie plated three in the bottom of the first, the Panthers responded with a run in the second to trail just 3-2 before the wheels fell off in the bottom of the second. Fueled by two errors, three walks, and two home runs, Erie scored ten times in the second inning to take another big lead. Seven more in the third inning put the game away, sending the Panthers to another tough defeat.

Jason Winstanley (Lewiston/Lewiston-Porter H.S.), Kannon VanDuzer (Sayre, Pa./Sayre Are H.S.), and Noboru  Shinohara (Tokyo, Japan/Dokkyo Saitama H.S.) each had a pair of hits in the nightcap.

Looking ahead

The Panthers have two more with Erie on Saturday, this time in Dryden.