Niagara closer Cameron earns ABCA All-Region Honours
Fieldhouse Pirates alum and Niagara Purple Eagles closer Zach Cameron (Hamilton, Ont.) has earned ABCA NCAAA Division I First Team All-Region honours. He is the lone relief pitcher on the team. Photo: Niagara University Athletics
June 12, 2024
Official Niagara University Athletics News Release
Greensboro, N.C. — On Tuesday, the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) announced its ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division I All-Region Teams.
Two Purple Eagles have earned all-region honours. Zach Cameron (Hamilton, Ont.) earned First Team All-Region honours as the lone relief pitcher on the team. Eric Rataczak earned Second Team All-Region honours.
Cameron appeared in 24 games in his final season as a Purple Eagle. He notched 11 saves while accumulating an 8-1 record. Through 24 games, he pitched 59 innings while registering an ERA of 2.90 with 59 strikeouts. Opposing hitters hit just .211 against the Hamilton, Ont., native.
Following the MAAC regular season, Cameron became the first Niagara pitcher to be named MAAC Relief Pitcher of the Year while also being named to the All-MAAC Second Team. He finishes his Niagara career with a 16-4 record and a program record 26 saves. Through 77 career appearances, he struck out 176 batters in 167 2/3 innings while holding opposing hitters to a .231 batting average.
Rataczak played in all 55 games for the Purple Eagles while making 53 starts. He finished the season with a .396 batting average to lead the MAAC. He set multiple program records for the Purple Eagles in 2024. His .396 batting average is the fourth-best in a single season in Niagara history. He hit a program-record 17 home runs while also driving in a program-record 71 runs. While driving in 71 runs, he scored 59 runs which is a program record for a single season. He notched 88 hits which set a new single season program record.
The Circle Pines, Minn., native was named MAAC Player of the Year following the regular season while being the only unanimous All-MAAC First Team selection.
With the all-region selections both Cameron and Rataczak are eligible for the ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division I All-American teams that will be announced on June 24.
It is the first time since the 2006 season that two Purple Eagles have been named to the ABCA All-Region Team. Last season, Niagara outfielder Max Giordano was named the ABCA All-Region First Team, it is the first time since the 2018 and 2019 seasons that Niagara has landed players on the All-Region team in back-to-back seasons.
The Purple Eagles closed out the 2024 season with a 38-17 record while capturing the program's first MAAC Championship along with the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance.