NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. - The Purple Eagle pitching staff had the Peacock offense off balance for the second-straight game, propelling Niagara (16-18, 6-6 MAAC) to a series victory over Saint Peter's (15-19, 5-7 MAAC) with a 7-4 victory on Sunday at Sal Maglie Stadium. The NU pitching staff struck out 14 batters, eight of them looking, on the afternoon.

"All in all, our pitching was outstanding [Sunday]," Niagara head coach Chris Chernisky said. "Hats off to Marcus Spaulding who again gave us a quality start. Dennis Chachko stepped up in a key spot to pitch two clean innings in the seventh and eighth to help us get the win."

Marcus Spaulding (Copenhagen, N.Y.) went six innings, allowing three runs on five hits while striking out eight batters. He set the side down in order three times and struck out the side in the third inning against the Peacocks top three spots in the order. After a second-inning double, Spaulding (4-1) faced 16 batters without allowing a base hit.

Dennis Chachko (Oceanport, N.J.) pitched a perfect two innings in relief of Spaulding. The 6-foot-6 right-hander struck out four of the six batters he faced and didn't allow a ball out of the infield. In Niagara's last two games, the pitching staff has struck out 21 batters while walking only five.

"I am very pleased with how our young men responded from losing game one of the series," Chernisky added. "We won two tight-knit, hard-fought games to give us the series win."

The Purple Eagle offense did a little bit of everything in the victory, as well. Niagara jumped out to an early 2-0 lead on freshman starter Jeremy Ives (2-1) with a pair of two-out runs. In the fifth and sixth innings, the Purple Eagles manufactured some offense with a sacrifice fly and a perfectly-executed suicide squeeze play. NU tacked on a pair of insurance runs in the eighth.

Harrison Harber (Kanata, Ont.) continued his hot streak at the dish, going 3-for-3 with a pair of runs and RBIs. Chris Leendertse (Ancaster, Ont.) and Matt Luccchesi (San Francisco, Calif.) each recorded a pair of hits, with Leendertse picking up two RBIs.

Tim Alberts (Baldwinsville, N.Y.) started things off with a two-out double to left field in the first inning. He scored on Harber's double through the right side. Frank Kurnik (Reno, Nev.) brought home the second baseman with an RBI single up the middle to give Spaulding a 2-0 lead.

Andrew Macdonald (Charlottetown, P.E.I.) scored an unearned run in the third inning to give Niagara a 3-1 lead. The senior shortstop walked, stole a base and advanced to third on an errant throw by the Peacock catcher. He came around on Harber's second RBI of the game. Cam Stykemain (Defiance, Ohio) led off the fifth inning with a triple to left center. Alberts brought home the speedy outfielder with a deep sac fly to left field, giving Niagara a 4-1 lead.

Three-straight two out hits by Saint Peter's cut the Purple Eagle lead to 4-3 in the sixth inning. Spaulding got his final batter to ground out to short to end the threat. In the bottom of the sixth, designated hitter Clint Elkins (Kansas City, Mo.) crushed a double to left center and advanced to third on a fielding mishap by the center fielder. With one out and a 1-1 count, Chernisky gave Leendertse the suicide squeeze signal, and the senior first baseman placed the ball just to the left of the mound, out of the reach of the third baseman, plating Elkins to give NU a 5-3 lead.

Enter Chachko from the Niagara bullpen, and any chance of a Peacock comeback was out of reach. The junior rightie ended the seventh with a called third strike to Saint Peter's leadoff hitter Dennis Alexander, his third-straight called third strike of the afternoon. Alexander, who went 5-for-8 on Saturday, finished the contest with an 0-for-5 afternoon with three strikeouts.

The Purple Eagles are back in action with a Wednesday night contest against the University at Buffalo. First pitch at Sal Maglie Stadium is scheduled for 7 p.m.