BUFFALO, N.Y. – An offensive outburst powered the Niagara University baseball team (16-18) to an 11-10 win over the University at Buffalo (10-25) Tuesday at Dunn Tire Park, in Buffalo, in the inaugural Big Four Baseball Classic. The Purple Eagles face St. Bonaventure in the championship game Wednesday at 7 p.m.

In the first inning, a Reed Eastley (Brandon, Man./Neelin) home run gave Niagara an early 3-0. The long drive by Eastley over the right field wall, his seventh homer of the season, perfectly illustrated the hot-hitting of the Purple Eagles in the game -- in which Niagara produced 15 hits (second-most of the season).

"It was good to see our offense break out after struggling for the past few games," Niagara head coach Mike McRae said.

Up 3-0 entering the second inning, hits by seniors Greg Lehman (Croghan, N.Y./Beaver River) and Tim Fitzgerald (Orchard Park/Canisius) brought home two more runs for the Purple Eagles, giving Niagara a 5-0 lead over the Bulls.

Timely hitting, along with strong pitching by freshman Ryan Virtue (Stittsville, Ont./Stittsville), helped the Purple Eagles build a commanding 10-2 lead after seven innings, however, Buffalo would forge a comeback over the final two innings.

In the eighth inning, with the bases loaded, Bulls outfielder Bryan Thrasher would hit a triple to right field, driving in three Buffalo runs and cutting the Niagara lead to 10-6. Thrasher would later score in the eighth on a sharply hit single by teammate Brian Zelasko.

After a single by Niagara sophomore Paul Solini (Liverpool, N.Y./Liverpool), scoring Vince Ircandia (Calgary, Alb./Central), in the bottom of the eighth made the score 11-6 heading into the final inning, Buffalo would add four runs in the ninth inning, but fell short by one run.

Purple Eagles sophomore pitcher Kyle Nicoletta (Oakville, Ont./St. Thomas Aquinas), who came in relief of senior Jeff Finucane (Rochester, N.Y./Spencerport) in the ninth inning, shut the door on the Buffalo comeback attempt, earning the final two outs of the game and his second save of the season.

Virtue, who allowed two runs on five hits, pitched seven innings for Niagara, earning his fifth win of the season. The seven innings of work tied a season high by the freshman left-hander.

Offensively, Solini led the Purple Eagles, going 4-for-5 from the plate, with two RBI and two runs scored.

"Obviously we’re excited to play (in the Big Four)," McRae said. "We came to win and now we have that opportunity."

Admission to the championship game is free and seating is on a first-come, first-serve basis.