LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – The Rider University baseball team swept a double-header Sunday to earn a sweep of a three-game series over Niagara, winning 13-6 in game one and 13-3 in game two. The Broncs are now to 19-8 on the season and 5-1 in MAAC play, while the Purple Eagles are 11-10 on the year, and 3-3 in league play.
 
Game one began with Niagara jumping out to a large lead, scoring two in the first, three in the fourth, and one in the sixth to build a 6-0 lead.
 
The Broncs came all the way back in the sixth. Brian Skettini (Midland Park, NJ/Ridgewood) led off the inning with a single. Luke Lesch (Gloucester Twp., NJ/Gloucester Catholic) followed with a walk. After Brendan O'Donnell (Malvern, PA/Great Valley) was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Socrates Bardatsos (Ridgefield, NJ/St. Joseph's Regional) and Jack Winsett (Voorhees, NJ/Eastern Regional) both walked in runs. Two batters later, Will Gallagher (Cranford, NJ/Cranford) singled to right center, driving in two. John Volpe (Sea Girt, NJ/Wall) hit a sacrifice fly to make it 6-5. Scott Shaw (Cherry Hill, NJ/Cherry Hill West) drilled a double off the wall in right, tying the game. The Broncs took the lead when Skettini got his second hit of the inning, driving in Shaw to put Rider up 7-6.  
 
Rider tacked on in the bottom of the seventh. Winsett beat out an infield single with one out. Matt Shepherd then walked. Two batter later, Volpe hit a ground ball between the first and second baseman. The Niagara second baseman made a diving play to stop the ball, but Volpe's speed down the line did not allow for a play, and with two outs, Winsett never stopped around third, coming all the way in to score. After Shaw walked to load the bases, Skettini cleared them with a three-run double. He would come in to score on a single by Lesch, extending the lead to 12-6.
 
In the eighth, Winsett again legged out a one-out infield single. After Anthony Paskell (Solon, OH/Saint Ignatius) walked, Gallagher hit a ball that got by the third baseman, allowing Winsett to score.
 
Game two saw Niagara get on top early again, scoring a pair of runs in the first inning. However, the Broncs would not waste any time taking the lead in the second half of the twin bill.
 
In the bottom of the first, Shaw and Skettini hit back-to-back one-out singles. With two outs, back-to-back Niagara errors allowed three Rider runs to score. The Broncs would make it 4-2 with an RBI single off the bat of Winsett.
 
In the second, Volpe beat out an infield hit with one out, then the late throw got by the first baseman allowing Volpe to move up 90 feet. He came in to score on a double by Shaw. Another Niagara error allowed Shaw to score and put Skettini on second. With two outs, O'Donnell, Bardatsos, and Winsett hit back-to-back-back singles, extending the lead to 9-2.
 
In the third, Volpe hit a one-out single. With two down in the inning, Skettini hit a home run to right center, and Lesch followed with a ball that just got over the right field fence, making it back-to-back jacks that had Rider on top 12-2.
 
The Purple Eagles got a run back in the top of the sixth.
 
Rider closed out the game early in the seventh. Lesch led off the inning with a single, followed by a base hit by O'Donnell. With one-out, Winsett hit a ball to the gap in right center, scoring Lesch and giving the Broncs the walk-off victory.
 
Quotes & Notes
"They got up 6-0 and got a little comfortable and starting walking guys and giving us opportunities. We still had to swing the bats."
 
"It's hard to sweep a double-header let alone a three game series, especially against a tame as good as they are. They've had a good season so far."
 
"We can score, that's one of the dangers about giving up on a game. Now we turn around and play Tuesday. It's always fun when the midweek games have a little more substance." – Head Coach Dr. Barry Davis
 
"Coach told us 'We're a good hitting team, don't try to be somebody that you're not'. Once one guy gets on, everybody just tries to do their part." – Senior Infielder John Volpe
 
- Rider has won six of its seven weekend series this season.
- Frank Doelling (Riverside, NJ/Riverside [Rowan College at Burlington County]) got the start in game one, allowing five runs, four earned, on seven hits in 4.0 innings. He struck out three.
- Christian Aiello (Hewitt, NJ/West Milford) threw 2.0 innings, giving up one run on two hits. He struck out one and earned the win.
- Alec Sachais (Egg Harbor Twp., NJ/Holy Spirit) threw 2.0 innings, allowing no runs on one hit, striking out one.
- Gavin Hawkes (Yardley, PA/Pennsbury) retired all three batters he faced, including a strikeout, to finish the game.
- Brian Young (Neptune, NJ/Communication) started game two, throwing six innings, allowing three runs on five hits and earning the win. He struck out seven.
- Clayton Poliey (Ringwood, NJ/Don Bosco Prep) tossed the final inning without allowing a hit. He struck out one.
- Skettini has reached safely in all 27 games this season.
- Skettini and Bardatsos both reached the 100-career hit milestone in game two.
 
Broncs by the Numbers
- Nine different Broncs recorded hits on the day, led by five each from Volpe, Skettini, and Winsett.
- Nine Broncs scored, with Shaw and Skettini crossing the plate five times.
- Skettini's home run is his second of the season.
- Lesch's home run is his fourth of the year.
 
Up Next
The Broncs return to action Tuesday for the semifinal round of the Liberty Bell Classic, when the Broncs visit Villanova at 3 p.m.