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Fall Ball Series Powered By Dreams Training Facility: SUNY Old Westbury

Rod Stephan is entering his 17th season as head coach at SUNY Old Westbury, and returns a strong core of players that have been with him for years. The Panthers are bringing back four All-Conference players in 2027, and have added a host of new faces to a roster aiming to bring Old Westbury back to the Skyline Conference tournament for the first time since 2023. 

After a 17-18 record in 2026, good for seventh in the Skyline Conference, Old Westbury is looking to rebound in a big way. According to Coach Stephan, they’ve addressed their team’s biggest need. 

“The biggest reason we came in seventh was that we weren’t able to finish games,” Stephan explained. “It was our job to bring in people that can help us finish those games, and I think we’ve done that.”

Fifth year grad student Vinny Giambona returns to lead the Panthers’ pitching staff after playing all of last season with two serious injuries.

“I pitched through a torn UCL and torn labrum last year, I was getting shots for them,” Giambona explained. “I knew I wasn’t going to overpower hitters with a fastball like I might have been able to in the past, but just throwing three pitches for strikes and trusting the defense while limiting walks was probably the biggest thing for me.”

Despite having two injuries that would sideline most players for months, Giambona turned in the best season of his college career, receiving First Team All-Skyline Conference Honors and being named Conference Co-Pitcher of the Year. Giambona posted a 6-1 record and 1.76 ERA with 56 strikeouts in 46 innings pitched. He was also named to the NCAA Division III Region III All-Region First Team. 

Giambona will play 2027 with an internal brace in his elbow, and forego any further surgeries on his UCL or labrum until after he graduates. 

The Panthers will have plenty of new options behind their ace. Lefty ESM graduate Cole Johnson joins the Old Westbury staff after two years at Suffolk County Community College. Johnson made eight starts for Suffolk in 2026 and pitched to 2.36 ERA with 51 strikeouts in 49.2 innings pitched. He will compete for a spot in the starting rotation this Fall.

Johnson’s former SCCC teammate Seth Kirschner is another newcomer to the Old Westbury staff this Fall. In nine starts at Suffolk last season Kirschner posted a 4.71 ERA while striking out 47 batters in 49.2 innings. Kirschner throws a heavy curveball to put batters away, and will be an intriguing weapon for Coach Stephan in 2027. 

Another transfer arm that has the Old Westbury staff excited is North Babylon graduate Tyler Anderson. Anderson made just five appearances and one start at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in 2026, but figures to be an important piece for the Panthers in 2027. Anderson’s sidearm delivery and lively fastball make him a difficult matchup for hitters, particularly when he follows a starter with a more traditional release point. 

Three more All-Conference players return for Old Westbury, including two First-Teamers in OF Brandon Hernandez and 3B JJ Palumbo. In his first season at Old Westbury Hernandez looked right at home, batting .367 with 22 RBI and 24 runs scored. His fellow All-Conference teammate Palumbo led the team in batting average in 2026, slashing .422/.492/.495 with 32 runs scored. The versatile infielder Palumbo will be a team captain for the Panthers in 2027. 

1B Mike Tiseo enters his Senior season coming off of a monster 2026 in which he led the team in home runs with nine, RBI with 36, and runs with 34 all while batting .355. The strong campaign earned him a place on the All-Conference Second Team. Tiseo is the engine of the Old Westbury offense, and returns in 2027 as a team captain. 

“He was a monster at the plate last year,” Coach Stephan said of Tiseo. “Him being Second Team All-Conference last year, not first, it tells you our league is strong.”

Old Westbury played well at home in 2026, posting a 13-6 record, but struggled on the road, going just 2-10. This is a problem they’re going to have to fix to make it back to the conference tournament in 2027. Team captain Tiseo believes it starts with energy. 

“We’d come out hot but then something would happen and the energy would die down,” Tiseo said. “Being a captain, I want to make sure we have that energy all the time, away from home especially.”  

One thing the Panthers can build on from last season, according to Tiseo, is a strong team chemistry. 

“The talent has been there, but this year will be different because of what we built last year,” Tiseo said. “The family that we built, and the brotherhood. I think that’s super important, and I think it will make a big difference this year, be a big game changer.”

Coach Stephan agrees.

“I think we have as good a culture with this team as I’ve ever seen,” Stephan said. “Great players, a great team atmosphere on the bench. Everyone is pulling for each other. They’re a great bunch of guys that love baseball.”

A slew of talented freshmen have joined Old Westbury for the 2027 season, and seem to be quickly fitting into the family Tiseo mentioned. Shawn Aliperti was an All-League catcher at Northport that brings solid contact and exceptional arm strength to the Old Westbury catcher room. He will compete for starts right away as a freshman. 

Two freshman right-handed pitchers, Carey graduate Ryan Kunkel and New Hyde Park graduate Daniel Lynn, should also be competing for playing time immediately. Both pitchers were multiple year starters on their respective varsity programs, and have seen their velocities climb this offseason. 

Two transfers on the offensive side worth keeping an eye on will be Will Tolliver from Herkimer Junior College and Dom Ruggiero from Queensborough CC. This pair of middle infielders are both speedy, contact hitters that can give Old Westbury solid defense at both second base and shortstop. 

Many JUCO graduates and Long Island natives find their way to playing at Old Westbury. According to Coach Stephan, his players always want to learn, both on and off the field. 

“I have a great staff… players are coming here because they feel like they can learn here,” Stephan said. “We had 38 players last year, 36 of them made the honor roll. These are not guys that just come here to play baseball. They want to learn in the classroom, and they want to learn here.” 

After shoring up the pitching staff this offseason, Giambona says another problem the Panthers need to fix in 2027 is the team’s approach at the plate with runners on base.

“We’ve had so many power guys that sometimes we didn’t want to do a job and just get the guy over,” Giambona said. “I think our philosophy for this year has to be just playing team baseball, you know. Doing your job. We blew some leads, but that’s baseball. We’ll get it done this year.”

Ultimately, Giambona is optimistic for the 2027 season. 

“I think we have a better team this year than we did last year,” Giambona said. “With all of our pitchers, there are so many guys that I would trust being on the mound on any given day.”

After scrimmaging Baruch College October 3, Old Westbury will not hold another scrimmage this Fall. Having addressed their most glaring issue from 2026, pitching depth, they will continue to practice throughout the Fall semester, building towards a 2027 season that they hope will see them back in the Skyline Conference Tournament.