FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Niagara women’s lacrosse team begins conference play as it hits the road to battle the Fairfield Stags on Saturday, March 31 at Noon. 

The Purple Eagles (2-5, 0-0 MAAC) tallied their second win of the season last week against the Detroit Titans with a 14-13 victory.  Junior Fran Pollastro led the way with five scores, including the game-winning goal with five seconds remaining in the game.  Senior Emily French also contributed five goals in the win. 

French is ranked sixth in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) in goals with 15 and is tied for the team-lead in points with Pollastro (16).  Sophomore Paige Matecki has won 33 draw controls ranking her second in the conference, while senior Taryn Burkholder has picked up 17 draw controls. 

The Stags (5-3, 0-0 MAAC) are coming off a loss to Rutgers last week, losing 11-10 in double overtime.  Fairfield is led by sophomore Addie Reilly, who has accumulated 20 goals, and junior Chloe Mangan who has 18 goals.  Freshman Courtney Chmil is tops on the team in three categories, including groundballs (28), draw controls won (17) and caused turnovers (11).