The Pitt Panthers made a statement with a three-game sweep over Eastern Michigan to open the 2025 baseball season over the weekend. Pitt out-slugged the Eagles 37-18 over 28 innings in a three-game set played at Centennial Park in Port Charlotte, Florida.
Pitt erased an 8-2 deficit to come back and win on Friday in the season opener by a score of 9-8 in 12 innings. The Panthers then used a big six-run sixth inning on Saturday to take the second game, 11-8, before ending with a 16-hit explosion to earn the sweep with a 17-2 decision on Sunday.
Top offensive performer: Luke Cantwell
Pitt head coach Mike Bell has used senior first basemen Luke Cantwell in the leadoff spot so far this season, and that move has worked well so far. In three games, Cantwell is 6-for-11 (.545) with a 1.706 OPS. Four of his six hits have gone for extra bases and he has also driven in five runs. In 2024, Cantwell was an impact bat as a transfer from Fairleigh Dickinson and played a key role for Pitt, and looks early on like he will be hold a significant spot for this year’s squad.
Top pitching performance: Drew Lafferty
In this year’s transfer portal haul, Pitt landed a number of former WPIAL stars coming back home. Drew Lafferty from South Park was at Kentucky the past two seasons, and had some success as a midweek pitcher for the Wildcats. The hope was that he would find a bigger role with Pitt, and on Sunday, the sophomore right-hander looked capable of living up to those expectations. Lafferty went five innings and allowed two runs on four hits. He struck out four and did not walk a batter and earned the win in his Panthers’ debut.
Welcome back
AJ Nessler came to Pitt in 2023 and showed promise as a true freshman. Nessler then transferred to UCF last season and started 19 games for the Golden Knights. He’s back in Pittsburgh and looked right at home in the middle of the Panthers’ lineup. The junior left fielder homered on Saturday and Sunday. His two home runs already matches his season total from 2023 as a freshman.
The bat carries
Right fielder Lorenzo Carrier, a 6’5” junior outfield transfer from Miami also had a nice showing in his first series as a Panther. Carrier produced home runs in Friday and Sunday and has six hits to this point and is settled in the heart of the Pitt batting order right from the start.
Stock rising
Ryan Zukerman looked impressive as a freshman, and the third basemen has sort of picked up right where he left off in 2024. Over the weekend, Zuckerman had a three-hit game on Friday and another on Sunday. He’s batting .438 and leads Pitt in hits (7) and RBIs (7).
Up next
This marks the second consecutive season Pitt has opened the year with a 3-0 record, the only two times that has happened in Mike Bell’s seven-year tenure on the job. The Panthers got off to a 4-0 start in 2024, and will look to at least match that this upcoming weekend with a three-game set in Cary (NC) against Monmouth University. The Hawks are off to a 2-2 start this season with a pair of wins over Dayton and two losses to Michigan State.
