JERSEY CITY, N.J. – The Niagara University softball team (16-22, 7-5) finished its four-game road swing this weekend with a split against Saint Peter’s (9-17, 4-7) at Jaroschak Field. The Purple Eagles won the opener, 5-2, but then dropped the nightcap, 8-7.
Niagara returns to action Tuesday when it travels to St. Bonaventure for a doubleheader. First pitch is at 3 p.m.
Game 1 - Niagara 5, Saint Peter’s 2
Niagara scored two runs each in the fifth and sixth innings to snap a two-game losing streak.
Saint Peter’s struck first in the bottom of the first when Julie Saporito doubled in the game’s first run.
The Purple Eagles tied the game in the second inning when junior Amanda Baluch (Delanson, N.Y.) hit her second home run of the season.
The Peahens took a 2-1 lead in the fourth when Danielle Bronner homered.
In the fifth inning, freshman Lisa Baker (West Seneca, N.Y./West Seneca) singled to left field, freshman Nicole Sum (Burnaby, B.C.) moved her to second with a single and then Baker scored on a Saint Peter’s error. Senior Kristina Kilian (Grand Island, N.Y./Grand Island) then singled in Sum.
Two more Niagara runs came in the sixth when Sum singled in Baker and sophomore Shannon Mongalise (Bethel Park, Pa.).
Baker was 3 for 4 with two runs, Sum 4 for 4 with two runs batted in and a run scored. Senior Tegan Bennett (Stouffville, Ont.) picked up her team-leading sixth win of the season, going seven innings and giving up six hits, two earned runs and striking out four.
Game 2 - Saint Peter’s 8, Niagara 7
After leading 5-0 going into the bottom of the third inning, Niagara gave up eight runs to drop the second game of the doubleheader.
Baker opened the game with a double and scored on a Sum single.
In the second, Baluch doubled and then junior Jamie Horn (Youngstown, N.Y./Lewiston-Porter) singled and stole second. Mongalise singled in both Baluch and Horn and then scored on a Saint Peter’s error.
Niagara’s fifth run came in the third when Baluch hit her second home run of the series.
Saint Peter’s tallied three runs in the bottom of the third when it had three hits, including a double.
In the fourth, both teams scored to tie the game 6-6. Niagara’s Mongalise doubled to left center and then scored on a Sum single. The Peahens capitalized on two Purple Eagle errors and had a hit to score three runs.
Niagara took the lead in the sixth, 7-6, when Horn singled to right center, stole second and scored on an Angie Clarke (Grafton, Ont.) single.
The Peahens won the game in the sixth when they plated two runs on three hits and an error.
Sum was 2 for 4, Baluch 2 for 4 with two runs scored, Horn 2 for 3 with two runs and Mongalise 2 for 4 with two runs and two RBI. Bennett took the loss, allowing five hits and five runs in three innings.
