LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J. - Senior Bill Rafferty tossed his first career complete game and received plenty of run support from his Purple Eagle teammates in a 6-3 conference win over Rider on Sunday. The victory gave Niagara a MAAC series win in the first league weekend of the season.

Rafferty went the distance, holding the Broncs to six hits over nine innings, allowing two earned runs. The right hander (2-4) struck out a career-high four batters and walked two.

"Sunday games in the MAAC come down to effort and these guys gave everything they had (Sunday)," Niagara head coach Rob McCoy said. "Bill was tremendous on the mound and our defense played well behind him. It goes without saying that this was a great way to kick off conference play."

On the offensive side, senior Matt Wietlispach and junior Brian Deering both belted two-run home runs in support of Rafferty. With NU leading 1-0 in the fourth inning, freshman Ryan McCauley drew a one-out walk and Deering brought him home with a homer to left field, his second of the season.

Freshman Wes Walker led off the top of the fifth with a double down the left-field line, and Wietlispach gave the Purple Eagles a 5-0 lead with his fourth long ball of the year. Wietlispach finished with a team-best three hits on the afternoon.

After the Purple Eagles allowed an unearned run in the bottom of the fifth, they responded when Deering scored an unearned run of his own, on a sacfrice fly off the bat of Walker. The Broncs would score one run in the seventh and another in the bottom of the ninth, but Rafferty shut the door for his first career complete game.

Senior Timothy Cozier put the Purple Eagles on the board in the second inning. The designated hitter laced a single to left field, bringing around McCauley who had doubled to the right field gap to start the frame.

McCauley and Deering both chipped in with two hits and two runs, while Deering added a pair of RBIs. McCauley reached base four times in five plate appearances.

The baseball team heads to Siena for a three-game set on Friday & Saturday. Friday's doubleheader starts at noon.