NIAGARA UNIVERSITY, N.Y. – The Niagara University baseball team (5-13, 2-1) suffered its first loss in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play when it lost 12-4 to Manhattan (5-13, 1-2) Sunday at Van Cortlandt Park in Riverdale, N.Y.

The Purple Eagles return to action Tuesday when they travel to Morgantown, W. Va., to take on West Virginia in a doubleheader at 1 p.m. at Hawley Field.

Manhattan 12, Niagara 4

Manhattan College 13 hits to help it win the final game of a three-game series with Niagara.

Niagara scored first when junior Reed Eastley (Brandon, Manitoba) tripled down the rightfield line and then scored on a wild pitch.

The Jaspers tallied three runs in the second inning and two more in the third to take a 5-1 lead after three innings.

The Purple Eagles cut it to 5-2 in the fifth when senior Greg Lehman (Croghan, N.Y.) doubled down the leftfield line, advanced to third on a sacrifice fly by sophomore Matt Schafer (Clifton Park, N.Y.) and scored on a single by senior Tim Fitzgerald (Orchard Park, N.Y./Canisius).

Manhattan scored two runs in the sixth and seventh innings and than tallied three more in the eighth.

In Niagara last at bat, the Purple Eagles scored twice when Eastley doubled to centerfield and scored Fitzgerald and junior Vince Ircandia (Calgary, Alberta).

Eastley was 2 for 4 with a double, triple and two runs batted in. Fitzgerald was 2 for 4 with a RBI and Lehman was 2 for 4 with a double.

Sophomore Matt Fuller (Rochester, N.Y./McQuaid Jesuit) took the loss on the mound.