On The Road Again
The Niagara Purple Eagles embark on their final road trip of the season with the first stop coming on Thursday night at 7:00 p.m. against the Iona Gaels.
    
Iona (20-6; 15-1 MAAC) currently leads the MAAC, but if this season's first meeting between these teams was any indication, Niagara (8-17; 6-10 MAAC) can be the team to hand the Gaels their second conference loss of the season.
    
The Purple Eagles narrowly missed handing the Gaels what would have been their first MAAC loss of the season back on Jan. 5 when these teams met in the Gallagher Center. NU built a 38-33 lead that it took into halftime. On offense, Meghan McGuinness led the way with 13 points behind a 6-for-9 effort from the field and Chanel Johnson hit 4-of-4 chances at the free-throw line to extend the lead before the buzzer. The Gaels were kept to a 25.7 percent (9-for-35) clip from the floor by a strong Purple Eagles defense. The fact that six of their nine field goals were three pointers kept Iona in the half.
    
The second half was more back-and-forth, but the Purple Eagles still held a 70-69 lead with five minutes left. A late run allowed the Gaels to pull away to a 94-84 victory. Johnson led the team, which had four players score in the double digits, with 19 points and Gabby Baldasare recorded her first career double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
    
Speaking of double-doubles, Niagara freshman Victoria Rampado earned MAAC Rookie of the Week honors after turning in 21 points and 10 rebounds in last Saturday's 65-57 win over Siena for her second straight double-double. She again led the team with 10 rebounds in Saturday's loss to Manhattan. If we extend the scope just a little bit, she leads the team in rebounding with 7.2 per game over the last five games. While NU has a 1-4 record in those games, it also has three players averaging in the double-digits. Johnson leads with 13.6 ppg, but Rampado isn't far behind with 13.2 ppg and Meghan McGuinness rounds out the trio with 11.4 ppg. 
    
The Gales are led by Damika Martinez who is scoring at a 25.4 ppg pace and Joy Adams who still averages a double-double with 17.8 ppg and 14.0 rpg. Their only loss in conference play was a 92-90 decision in overtime against Rider. They have won the last three games, including last Sunday's 73-66 revenge win over Rider. 
 
How To Tune In
•    Purple Eagle fans can follow all of Thursday's action on PurpleEagles.com.
 
Against the Gaels (Niagara leads 26-25)
•   Niagara lost the first game of this season's series after it dropped both games in last season's series. It split the season series in 2011-12 with the win coming on the road by a score of 68-55.  That win snapped a 14-game losing streak.  Between 1992-2005 the Purple Eagles went 23-5 against the Gaels.
 
The First Of Two Quick Notes About Rampado
• We're going to talk all about Victoria Rampado's double-double in a minute, but first we need to mention how she is the reigning MAAC Rookie of the Week after she collected the aforementioned double-double then led NU with another 10 rebounds against Manhattan (2/15).
• This is the second time in five weeks Rampado earned the honor. She earned her first award after dropping a career-high 23 points against Monmouth on Jan. 19.
 
This Rampado Lady Is Kinda Good
• Freshman Victoria Rampado scored a double-double in the two-straight  games before the loss to Manhattan (2/15).
• First she scored 18 points and collected 10 rebounds against Rider on Feb. 9 to become the fourth player this season to record a double-double. Both her point and rebound totals were team-highs in the 82-72 loss.
• Then she scored 21 points and got another 10 rebounds against Siena on Feb. 13.  Again, both were team-highs (except she was tied with Chanel Johnson in points, but it still totally counts).
• For more information on the other Niagara double-doubles, consult your local library or just refer to the notes about them later on in these game notes.