Niagara University, N.Y.—The Niagara baseball team defeated St. Bonaventure on Tuesday afternoon at Bobo Field. The Purple Eagles downed the Bonnies 8-1 for their 27th win of the season.
How it Happened
The Bonnies struck first as they took a 1-0 lead in the first inning on a bases loaded walk.
Niagara responded in the bottom of the first inning. Nick Groves notched a leadoff single on a 2-2 pitch and then swiped second. Brady Desjardins then drew a walk to bring Eric Rataczak to the plate with runners on first and second with no outs. On a 2-2 pitch, Rataczak singled up the middle to bring home Groves from second to tie the game at one. After a fielder's choice, Kelly Corl then drew a walk to load the bases. Jason Green came to the plate with the bases loaded with one out. Green drove a 1-2 pitch the base of the wall in the left centerfield gap that brought all three Purple Eagles home to give Niagara a 4-1 lead.
The Purple Eagles increased their lead in the bottom of the second inning. Nate Milk opened the inning with a walk and then stole second. After a pair of outs, Rataczak singled to right field to bring home Milk to give Niagara a 5-1 lead.
Neither team scored again until the bottom of the fourth inning. Rees Kozar opened the bottom of the fourth with a triple to right center. After an out, Groves blooped a single to left field to bring home Kozar with the sixth Niagara run to make it a 6-1 lead.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Purple Eagles got back on the board. Vincent Mauro opened the inning with a walk and later swiped second with one out. After a flyout, Groves roped a 3-2 pitch left center to bring home Mauro with the seventh Purple Eagle run, Groves notched his triple of the season.
Niagara increased its lead to 8-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning as the Purple Eagles notched their third triple of the game. Green drove an 0-1 pitch to right field and drove in Gavin Schrader from first to make it 8-1 Niagara.
Niagara Notes
· Evan Wilde started on the mound and notched his first win of the season. He went 3.0 innings while allowing just one run on one hit with three strikeouts.
· Brady Kobitowich pitched the fourth and fifth innings for the Purple Eagles. He allowed just two hits while inducing four groundball outs and two flyouts.
· Jack Dickinson pitched a pair of innings for the Purple Eagles, he allowed just one hit while striking out one batter. He notched a pair of flyouts and a pair of groundouts.
· Blake MacMillian made his first appearance of 2024 as he pitched the eighth inning. He struck out a pair of batters while not allowing a hit.
· Nick Veselinovic pitched the ninth inning for the Purple Eagles. After allowing a pair of hits, he got a groundout and a pair of strikeouts.
· Niagara hit three triples in the game, they came into the game with just five on the season. It is the first time since Mar. 11, 2020, against Boise State that Niagara has had multiple triples in a game.
· Niagara notched 10 hits, it is the 23rd time this season that Niagara has notched 10 or more hits. In those games, Niagara has a 19-4 record this season. Niagara is also 19-4 this season when they outhit their opponents.
· Both Rataczak and Groves had three hits. For Rataczak it is his 11th game this season with three or more hits. Groves notched his seventh three hit game of the season.
· Green drove in a career-high four runs while also notching his first career multi hit game as he went 2-4 at the plate.
· Desjardins notched a hit and a walk and has now reached base in 17 straight games which is the highest active streak for the Purple Eagles. Groves has reached base safely in 16 games.
· Rataczak leads the MAAC in hitting as he is hitting .419 this season. He leads Niagara with 11 homers and 53 RBI this season.
· Groves has moved up to eighth in the MAAC with a .359 average. The Purple Eagles have five players in the top 25 in hitting in the MAAC.
· Niagara notched its 27th win of the season and are just two wins away from tying the program record of wins. Niagara is tied for first place in the MAAC and has the most wins among MAAC teams.
Up Next
The Purple Eagles return to MAAC play for a three-game series against Quinnipiac at Bobo Field. The series starts on Friday with first pitch scheduled for 3 PM.
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