POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. – The Purple Eagles baseball team closed out its season series with Marist on Saturday, dropping both games of a doubleheader.
Game 1: Marist 13, Niagara 9 (7 innings)
- After two scoreless innings to open the game, Marist (14-14, 6-3 MAAC) took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning.
- A score from Peter Battaglia in the top of the fourth evened the score, 1-1.
- Marist reclaimed its lead over the Purple Eagles (11-17, 4-5 MAAC) in the bottom of the fourth inning, 5-1.
- In the top of the fifth, Michael Gabriele doubled to left center to score Wyatt Olson and put NU down by only three runs, 5-2.
- With bases loaded in the top of the sixth, Olson doubled to left center sending three runs home to knot the score at 5-5.
- Marist, however, had a monster bottom of the fifth, taking a 13-5 lead over the Purple Eagles.
- In the top of the seventh, both Battaglia and Owen Dziados hit two-run homeruns, but it was not enough to overcome the Red Foxes' lead.
- Greg Cullen had a team-high three hits.
- Olson led the team in RBIs with three, while Battaglia and Dziados each had two.
- Battaglia had a team-best three runs scored.
- Cody Eckerson started on the mound, fanning three in 4.2 innings pitched.
- Alexandre Jones (0-3) took the loss. Jones faced seven batters and allowed six earned runs in less than one inning pitched.
Game 2: Marist 9, Niagara 7
- The Purple Eagles took the early lead in game two. A double from Cullen scored Benny Serrano to give NU a 1-0 lead over the Red Foxes in the top of the first inning. Marist, however, answered quickly, scoring three runs in the bottom of the first to take a 3-1 lead.
- In the top of the fifth, Steven Kokoski hit his first career homerun to put the Purple Eagles down by only one, 3-2.
- Battaglia hit his second homer of the day in the top of the sixth to tie things up, 3-3.
- With bases loaded in the top of the eighth inning, Dawson Bailey was hit by a pitch, scoring Trevor McCauley. Darian Blanks then singled to center field to send Dziados home. Gabriele reached base on a fielding error by second base and Olson scored. Bailey then scored on a wild pitch to give the Purple Eagles a 7-3 lead over the Red Foxes.
- Marist tied things up, 7-7, in the bottom of the eighth inning. In the bottom of the ninth, a two-run homerun from the Red Foxes earned them the walk-off win and the series sweep of the Purple Eagles.
- Dziados led Niagara in hits with three. He also had a team-high two doubles.
- Matthew Grace (1-2) took the loss. He struck out two batters and allowed three earned runs in 1.2 innings pitched.
Up Next
- The Purple Eagles take on crosstown rival Canisius on Tuesday, April 17 at 3:00 p.m. for the first of three meetings this season.
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