MILWAUKEE, Wis. – Behind a seventh-inning rally and solid pitching performance, the Milwaukee baseball team picked up a pair of wins over Purdue Fort Wayne on Saturday. The Panthers scored four runs in the seventh inning of the opener to win 6-5 in walkoff fashion and followed with a 5-2 victory in the night cap.
 
Trailing by three in the final inning of game one, Milwaukee's (6-12, 6-5 Horizon League) hopes were dwindling, but the Panthers rallied for the second straight day.
 
"We competed throughout the whole game," head coach Scott Doffek said. "We didn't pitch all that well and were not too solid in the batter's box, but they gave us a chance and we made them pay."
 
Following singles from Zach Nogalski and Jack Kraus, Joe Vyskocil drew a two-out walk to load the bases for the Panthers.
 
Quinton Morris then drove in two with a single and Mitchell Buban tied it 5-5, ripping the first pitch he saw through the left side.
 
One batter later, Jack Cavanaugh pushed a single to right field to score Morris for the walkoff win.  
 
Kraus put the Panthers on top early in game two, roping a two-run triple to the right-center wall and the pitching staff took care of business on their end.
 
Dylan Szajkovics worked four scoreless innings in his first collegiate start, striking out five. Adam LaRock entered and earned the win, holding PFW without a hit in 1.1 innings.
 
"It was good to get Dylan his first start," Doffek said. "He's got talent and it was nice to see him relax a little on the fly. He made some big pitches which is what we needed."
 
Milwaukee added three insurance runs late and Matt McCarty worked a strong 3.2 innings to earn the save and give the Panthers their fourth straight victory. The Mastodons (7-11, 4-7 Horizon League) got a late home run, but McCarty got the next batter to line out as Milwaukee held on.
 
"I thought McCarty did a phenomenal job when the game was in the balance there and settled it in," Doffek said.
 
The Panthers pounded out 20 hits in the doubleheader but struggled with runners in scoring position, leaving 19 total on base.
 
Nogalski finished with four hits on the day, scoring four runs and driving in another. Krause reached base seven times with three hits.
 
Marcus Cline, Cavanaugh, Vyskocil, Buban, and Ty Olejnik also had multi-hit days for the Panthers.
 
The Panthers will go for the sweep tomorrow as Milwaukee and Purdue Fort Wayne wrap up the four-game series from Franklin Field with first pitch at 12:00 pm. Live coverage can be found on MKEPanthers.com.