Bellerose, New York – The BMCC Baseball team came into their home opener Tuesday afternoon against Queensborough Community College with a confident bunch after posting 10 of their final 11 runs on Sunday afternoon in the last three innings. The Panthers unloaded for the game's first eight runs the moment they stepped in the batter's box, rolling to a 17-5 home opening win over the Tigers at Padavan-Preller Complex. 

The Panthers, who improve to 1-2 overall (1-0 CUNYAC), pick up their first regular season win since the 2019 season, and their 17 run output offensively surpasses the 2018 team's mark of 16 runs which they rang up against Monroe-Bronx in April. The Tigers fall to 0-1 (0-1 CUNYAC) with the loss.
 
The Panther's offense exploded for a season-high 19 hits and 17 runs, with nine different players recording a hit, five registering multi-hit games, and three registering multi-RBI games. Sophomore Frank Reyes (Brooklyn, New York) and Peter Rodriguez Reyes (Bronx, New York) spearheaded the BMCC offensive attack, both smacking a game-high four hits and two doubles, with Reyes driving in a game and career-high four RBIs while Rodriguez-Reyes drove in three. Rodriguez-Reyes went a perfect 4-for-4 and joined freshman Nicholas Mattera (Moorpark, California) to score a game-best four runs. Mattera led all players with a game and season-best four steals, while Reyes and Rodriguez-Reyes had two apiece, and freshman Luis Ramirez (Brooklyn, New York) had one.
 
Mattera also had three hits in the contest, and sophomore Abdel Raheem Dolah (Brooklyn, New York) and freshman Peter Marino (New York, New York) connected for two hits apiece while Raheem Dolah drove in three runs. Underclassman Adonis Suarez (Queens, New York) also recorded two RBIs in the contest.
 
Mattera retired three of the first four batters he faced in the top of the first inning, then Reyes led off the bottom of it with a single and came across for the first Panthers run when Mattera's fly ball was botched in left field by Noah Tannenbaum. 
 
After Mattera stole, Marino drilled a double down the left field line to bring him across to give the Panthers a 2-0 lead after one. After Mattera struck out the side in the top of the second Rodriguez-Reyes would single to shortstop, then after stealing second, was driven across the plate by a Ramirez double, making it 3-0. Ramirez would steal third, and Reyes would drill a single past second base to make it 4-0. After Reyes stole second, Mattera connected for a single, and both were brought in on a Raheem Dolah single to make it 6-0 after two innings of play.
 
Mattera retired three of the four batters he faced in the top of the third, then Maxwell Jimenez (Dominican Republic) ripped a triple down the right field line, and Rodriguez-Reyes brought him across to make it 7-0 before Reyes unloaded a line drive double to bring Rodriguez-Reyes in to make it 8-0 after three. Leonardo Alvarez would finally get the Tigers on the board at the top of the fourth with a solo blast to center field. After a Sean Lynch single, he would be walked in to cut the BMCC lead to 8-2. Miguel Baez would get hit by a pitch bringing the score to 8-3, but then Jeffrey Roldan (New York, New York) got the final out of the fourth freezing Tannenbaum at the plate for a strikeout.

The Panthers would respond immediately with five more runs in the bottom of the fourth on an RBI double from Raheem Dolah to make it 9-3, then stretch it to an eight-run lead 11-3 on a two-run single by Suarez. Reyes connected on a two-run double with two outs to extend the advantage to 13-3 after four. After Roldan retired three of the four batters in the top of the fifth, the Panthers would tack on four more in the bottom of it with an RBI from Jimenez and a two-run double by Rodriguez-Reyes, who would come across on a fielding error to make it 17-3 going into the top of the sixth. Marino allowed a two-run homer in the top of the seventh but rallied to retire three straight batters giving the Panthers a 17-4 win.

Mattera got the win for the Panthers in his first appearance of the season with a scoreless three innings allowing no hits and striking out a season-high eight batters. Roldan came out of the bullpen in relief and allowed three runs on two hits while striking out four. Marino pitched the seventh inning allowing one hit and two runs with a strikeout.
 
Jimenez led the Panthers defensive effort with a game-high 15 putouts and picked off a runner in the top of the first.
 
Freshman James Cummins took the loss for Queensborough going three innings while allowing 17 runs on 19 hits, striking out six and walking zero.
 
The Panthers will look for back-to-back victories for the first time since the 2018 season against Queensborough on Friday, March 24, at 3:30 p.m. from Padavan-Preller Complex. For more information, please visit the BMCC Baseball Schedule Page.
 
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT BOROUGH OF MANHATTAN COMMUNITY COLLEGE
The athletic program at Borough of Manhattan Community College encompasses a total of seven varsity teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level. For the latest news on the Panthers, please visit us at https://bmccathletics.com - The official site of BMCC Athletics. Follow the Panthers on Instagram (@bmcc_athletics) and Twitter (@BMCCAthletics), and Like Us on Facebook (BMCC Athletics).