The Panthers baseball team missed out on a chance to gain ground in the Region III West Division standings Thursday. The Panthers entered the day in 6th place in the division, just one win behind Genesee Community College, which came to town in 4th place. The Panthers won game one 8-7 but fell flat in game two, losing 12-1 to remain in 6th place. Tompkins Cortland's record is now 12-15 overall and 8-9 in the West Division. Genesee is 21-14 overall and 9-6 in division.
Game one – Tompkins Cortland 8, Genesee 7
The Panthers used a five-run second inning for the early lead, but Genesee came back with two in the third and four in the fourth to lead 6-5. Tompkins Cortland reclaimed the lead with three in the bottom of the fourth, and then withstood a last-inning rally to hold on for an 8-7 win.
Alex Babcock (Cortland/Cortland H.S.) was 3-for-4, including a hit in each of the team's run-scoring innings. Joseph Tummino (Homer/Homer H.S.) and Jinwoo Baek (Osan-si, South Korea/Yaptap) each had two hits and Austin Kulas (Moravia/Moravia H.S.) ripped a double, his 16th of the season.
Ethan Buckley (Bath/Haverling H.S.) went six innings for his fourth win of the year. He allows six runs on seven hits, striking out six. Joey Kench (West Henrietta/Rush-Henrietta H.S.) picked up the save despite allowing one run in the seventh inning.
Game two – Genesee 12, Tompkins Cortland 1
The Cougars opened game two with a run in the first. The Panthers tied the game in the third, but Genesee put across a run in the fourth to lead 2-1. A five-run fifth was followed by two in the sixth and three in the seventh, giving Genesee an even dozen. Meanwhile, the Panthers were struggling, only reaching base via a pair of errors and a pair of hit batsmen through the first four innings. The lone hit came off the bat of Babcock with two outs in the fifth, but the next seven were retired in order to seal the win for the Cougars.
Tummino took the loss on the mound, his first defeat this year against two wins.
Looking ahead
The Panthers and Erie Community College are scheduled to play a doubleheader in Dryden on Saturday.