STAFF REPORTS
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NIAGARA UNIV. — The Purple Eagles baseball team hosts the Quinnipiac Bobcats for a doubleheader Sunday beginning at noon and a third game on Monday, also beginning at noon.
Last time out, Niagara dropped a single game to St. Bonaventure, 7-2, on Wednesday. Trevor McCauley led NU with one RBI and one double. McCauley and Greg Cullen each had a team-best two hits and Peter Battaglia and Tanner Kirwer each had one run scored. Nate Mascellino (1-2) struck out two batters and allowed two runs in 4.0 innings pitched.
Sophomore shortstop Cullen leads the Purple Eagles at the plate. He has a team-high 33 hits and is batting a team-best .355. Kirwer, a junior outfielder, leads Niagara in runs scored with 23, doubles with 16 and stolen bases with 15 and has a team-best .543 slugging percentage and .441 on-base percentage. Freshman first baseman Battaglia leads the team in RBI with 20. On the mound, redshirt-junior Cody Eckerson (3-1), has an ERA of 2.16. He has struck out 22 batters in 25.0 innings pitched.
Freshman Matthew Brash (4-0) leads NU in innings pitched with 37.0 and senior Daniel Procopio (3-2) has struck out the most batters (37). Redshirt-senior Matt McCuen leads the Niagara pitching staff with four saves on the season so far. With their 4-2 MAAC record, the Purple Eagles are currently tied with Monmouth for the top spot in the conference.
Catcher Joseph Burns leads the Bobcats at the plate with 30 hits and a .313 average. He also has a team-best .405 on-base percentage. Liam Scafariello, a sophomore first baseman, has a team-high 21 RBI, 19 runs scored and 11 homeruns. Senior infielder Matthew Batten leads the team in stolen bases with six and sophomore outfielder Brian Moskey leads the team in doubles with five. Wyatt Hamilton (1-0), a senior, leads the team in innings pitched with 25.2. He has an ERA of 5.26. Junior Robert Hitt (1-1) has a team-high 20 strikeouts. He has an ERA of 3.70.
The Purple Eagles next host Little 3 rival St. Bonaventure on Tuesday for a doubleheader starting at 2 p.m.
