Softball Set to Open the 2024 Campaign at Home Against Brooklyn on March 12

3/11/2024 1:29:00 PM | By: SUNY Old Westbury Athletic Communications

OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. – The SUNY Old Westbury softball team will open the spring season on Tuesday as the team plays host to the Bloodhounds of Brooklyn College in a non-conference doubleheader. The Panthers are coming off a year where they finished with an overall record of 12-17 and a conference record of 10-8. Last year, the Panthers' season culminated with a loss to Mount Saint Mary in the first round of the Skyline Conference playoffs.

Old Westbury will return to campus this year after playing all of their home games on Farmingdale State's campus last season. The Panthers are coming back to a brand-new softball field at the Jackie Robinson Athletic Complex on Old Westbury's campus. The last time that the Panthers appeared at home in front of fans was back in the spring of 2019.

Head Coach Tommy Pennino enters his 4^th season at the helm and is looking to push the program to make a deep playoff run this year.

When asked about what makes this year's roster special, Pennino said, "Our overall depth. I feel we are deep at every position, especially in our pitching rotation. Each one of our pitchers has different qualities about them that help make them successful. It's going to be exciting to see how we utilize the rotation against different opponents. I feel we have a lot of options to go with this season with this group. We added a lot more offensive threats this season as well".

This year's team features many returning student-athletes as well as several newcomers debuting for the first time in green and white. The veteran student-athletes such as Alaina Reilly, Gianna DiLillo, Natalie Intrieri, Madison Danin, Jessica Tucci and Hillary Bennett will look to push the team and provide veteran leadership.

In 2023, Intrieri led the team in batting averages with a .477 overall average. She recorded 19 runs on 21 hits while finishing second team all-conference.

Reilly was another all-conference finisher who led the league in doubles with 12. Last season, the Long Island native earned a .489 overall batting average.

Last season, Danin sat atop the Skyline Conference tied as the home runs leader with five. The junior power hitter will look to build and improve from last year's finish and provide the Panthers with strength towards the middle of the lineup.

The Panthers' defense will be led again by Bennett who finished last year with 39 putouts and 26 assists. Bennet will also look to add her speed on the bases after finishing with 11 stolen bases in 2023.

DiLillo will look to provide her bat in big-time situations for the Panthers this year. In the 2023 campaign, DiLillo hit .370 against the conference.

Another player to watch who is looking to build on last season, is veteran pitcher Julia Pastrana who tossed a conference top-10 ERA of 3.77 last season.

This year's newcomers are led by Division I transfer Ashley Pierce who joins the Panthers from Bryant University. Another top prospect joining OW this year is first-year catcher Madison Muehling from Arizona.

The Panthers also added four new arms this year headlined by transfers Taylor Murphy and Layla Ramos.

As a team in 2023, the Panthers amassed a batting average .322, 236 hits, 189 runs, 123 walks and seven home runs.

This season will be the first time that Pennino gets to coach on his home field as a result of the pandemic. "Preparing the right schedule is important for developing the team over the season. I feel we just started to get to the point to really focus on a good competitive yearly schedule. As we continue to build, I would like to incorporate a better strength of schedule of opponents. I feel like a balanced schedule is very important. You want to be able to equally challenge the players while also building confidence within them.

The Panther's schedule features a mix of both non-conference and conference opponents.
The season will get going with a non-conference doubleheader at home against Brooklyn on March 12 at 4 PM.

OW will then welcome John Jay for another non-conference doubleheader on Thursday, March 14 at 1PM

From there, the Panthers will travel to Clearwater, Florida to take part in a week filled with non-conference games. While in Florida, the Panthers will go up against Washington and Jefferson, SUNY Brockport, Buffalo State, Plattsburgh State, Endicott, Knox, and Manchester.

"The Florida Spring Training trip is so beneficial towards our team's success. It's a bonding experience for the group. They learn to live together and play together on this trip. Our team is like our family throughout the season. This bonding experience creates a strong unit to compete together".

Upon returning from the 'Sunshine State' the Panthers will play another non-conference doubleheader, this time against Hunter. That game will take place on April 1, beginning at 4 PM.

Old Westbury opens conference play on Sunday, April 7 as Farmingdale State comes to town for a rivalry game.

The Panthers will play their final non-conference game of the season on April 11 as the team plays host to Baruch.

The following day, OW continues conference play with a Friday morning doubleheader against Yeshiva. On Sunday, April 14, the Panthers will take their first official road trip of the year as the team travels to take on Mount Saint Mary.

Old Westbury then returns home to take on the Bears of St. Joseph's-Brooklyn on Friday, April 19. OW will head to Patchogue, N.Y. on April 21 to face off against St. Joseph's-Long Island.

On April 27, the Panthers of Purchase College will come to the Jackie Robinson Athletic Complex for the 'Battle of the Panthers'.

The Panthers will play in back-to-back road games on April 28 and May 4 against Mount Saint Vincent and Manhattanville, respectively.

The regular season will close for the green and white at home against Sarah Lawrence on Sunday, May 5 at 12 PM.

This year's Skyline Conference playoffs begin on Tuesday, May 7. From there, the double elimination games will take place from May 9-12. The champion of the Skyline Conference playoffs will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA DIII Championship.

"I would say every coach's goal (every team's goal) in college softball is to win the conference championship and continue to regional play and beyond. Special teams achieve those championships. We've been very focused on building a great, positive, competitive and learning culture here. That includes the whole experience of being a college student-athlete. Every year I hope to provide life-long memories and lessons for these young women. Their happiness and experience at Old Westbury really means a lot to the coaching staff. My goal is to create confident young women both on and off the field. I really feel the players collectively are in control of creating that magic that you see the special championship teams possess" said Pennino.

For more information and up-to-date schedules, statistics and video throughout the season, visit https://www.oldwestburypanthers.com/sports/softball.

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