Niagara University, N.Y.—Nearly 28 hours after the game begun, the Niagara baseball team notched its first MAAC win of the season on Saturday in walk-off fashion as they defeated Iona 15-14.
How it Happened
The Purple Eagles opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning as they loaded the bases with one out after Brady Desjardins and Gavin Schrader drew walks and Eric Rataczak was hit. Nick Monile then drew a five pitch walk to bring in the first run of the game.
Iona took a 2-1 lead in the top of the second on three hits as the snow started to come down.
Matt Ward drew a walk to open the bottom half of the inning. Kelly Corl then reached on an error by the right fielder that put runners on second and third with no outs. Nick Groves then singled up the middle to bring home both runners and give Niagara a 3-2 lead. After Desjardins reached on a throwing error the game would be suspended until Saturday afternoon due to the weather conditions. When the game resumed Rataczak and Schrader drew back to back walks to load the bases. Monile came to the plate and singled home Desjardins to make it a 4-2 Niagara lead. Tommy Takayoshi then notched a sacrifice fly to bring home Rataczak with Niagara's fifth run.
The Purple Eagles got back on the board in the bottom of the third inning as Ward scored on a groundout from Groves to make it 6-2 Niagara.
Iona made it a one run game in the top of the fourth inning as they scored three runs on two hits.
The Purple Eagles responded in a big way in the bottom of the fourth inning as Schrader and Monile both singled to open the inning to put runners on first and second. Takayoshi then drew a walk to load the bases with no outs. Vincent Mauro drew a bases loaded walk to push across the seventh Purple Eagle run. After a pitching change and a strikeout, Corl singled home a pair of runs to give Niagara a 9-6 lead. With Groves at the plate, Mauro swiped third and came across to score as the throw went into left field. Corl moved to third on the play. Groves then drove in Corl with a groundout to give Niagara a six-run lead. With the bases cleared and two outs, Desjardins ripped a ground rule double to start a two out rally. Rataczak, then drove in Desjardins one pitch later with a single to left field.
Niagara added to their lead in the bottom of the fifth inning. Monile started the inning with a single and later moved to third on a one out single from Mauro. Monile came across with the 13th Niagara run on a groundout from Ward to make it 13-5 Niagara.
Iona started to mount a comeback in the top of the sixth as they scored three runs on two hits to cut the Purple Eagle lead to five.
Desjardins opened the bottom of the sixth with a single and moved up to second on a groundout. After a lineout, Monile hit a ground rule double to bring Desjardins home with the 14th Purple Eagle run.
In the top of the seventh inning, the Gaels cut the Purple Eagle lead to just four.
Neither team scored again until the top of the ninth when Iona tied the game at 14 with a two out grand slam.
With the score tied at 14, Mauro opened the ninth inning with a single to left field. Ward then moved Mauro over to second with a sacrifice bunt. Corl moved Mauro to third on a groundout to bring Groves to the plate with two outs and the winning run on third base. On a 2-1 pitch, Groves singled to left field to bring home Mauro to give Niagara a walkoff win.
Niagara Notes
· Maximilian Ramirez IV went the first two innings on the mound before coming out of the game after the delay. He allowed two runs while striking out a pair.
· Liam Reynolds picked up his third win of the season as closed out the ninth inning.
· Niagara had 17 hits in the game which ties the second most hits in game this season by Niagara. The Purple Eagles have notched 10+ hits in 13 games this season, they are 10-3 in those games.
· Seven Purple Eagles had hits in the game as Monile led the way with four hits. Both Groves and Schrader had three hits while Desjardins, Mauro, and Corl each had two hits.
· Groves had five RBI in the game, which is a career high for Groves. He now has 17 RBI this season and 39 in his career.
· Desjardins scored four runs while eight Purple Eagles scored a run.
· The Purple Eagles drew 13 walks in the game, which is a new season high for the Purple Eagles. Desjardins had a team high three walks while Ward, Corl, and Schrader each had two walks.
· Niagara improves to 1-0 in MAAC play as conference play opened this weekend.
· As a team Niagara is hitting .313 which leads the MAAC. Niagara has also scored a MAAC high 169 runs this season.
· Monile is third in the MAAC in hitting with a .434 average while Rataczak is fourth in the MAAC in hitting. Desjardins is seventh in the MAAC with a .360 batting average. Schrader is ninth in the MAAC with a .355 batting average.
Up Next
The Purple Eagles and Gaels will play a doubleheader on Sunday with game one starting at noon. Game two will start about 30 minutes after the first game concludes, both games are scheduled for nine innings.
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