ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. – The Niagara softball team split a pair of games against Little 3 rival St. Bonaventure on Tuesday afternoon. The Purple Eagles topped the Bonnies, 5-3, in game one before being denied a season sweep of SBU with an 8-0 loss in game two.

Niagara began the season with two wins over St. Bonaventure at the Rebel Spring Games in Kissimmee, Fla. and started the doubleheader with a 5-3 win.

Jenna Baker (West Seneca, N.Y.) shined for the Purple Eagles (16-13) in the game one win. Baker went 3-for-4 with two RBIs, including the insurance run in the fifth inning. She drove in the first run of the game to give NU a 1-0 lead in the second.

SBU (8-20) scored three runs in the third to jump ahead 3-2.

Kayla Hines (Clifton Park, N.Y.), who also had two RBIs in the game, knocked home the game-tying run in the fifth. Maggie McDonald (Cicero, N.Y.) scored the game-winning run on a fielding error by SBU second baseman Brittany Storch.

Freshman pitcher Julie DiMatteo (South Portland, Maine) won her eighth game of the season. After allowing three runs off of four hits in the third inning, DiMatteo allowed one hit and no runs in the final four innings in the complete game win.

SBU got the better of NU in game two.

Pitcher Ali Grab (Erie, Pa.) lasted 1/3 of an inning, allowing four earned runs.  The Bonnies pushed across eight runs in five innings while Niagara managed only two hits and zero runs.

Niagara is back in conference play with a game at Iona on April 18.