ESPN3 / Live Stats

NIAGARA UNIV., N.Y. – The Niagara Purple Eagles and the Monmouth Hawks will play in the 2015 MAAC Tournament First Round on Saturday at 11:00 a.m. at Kessler Field.
 
DON'T MISS OUT
•   Saturday's game will air live on ESPN3. Fans can also follow all of Saturday's action via Live Stats that can be found online at PurpleEagles.com.

NIAGARA TIDBITS
• Niagara enters Saturday's contest 6-11 overall and 3-5 in the MAAC after dropping a close 10-9 decision to the Siena Saints in the final game of the regular season.
• The Purple Eagles offense runs through seniors Carrie-Jo Farrugia and Erin Patenaude as well as sophomore Taylor Wolf.  Farrugia leads the squad with 33 goals and 13 assists, while her teammates Wolf (31 goals, seven assists) and Patenaude (18 goals, 15 assists) are second and third on the team in points, respectively. 
• Molly Gray and Danielle Maio have added at least 20 points each for the Purple Eagles while Hannah Barnett has chipped in 13 goals and four assists on the season. Cailyn Negus has contributed 10 goals while Brittany Delano has added nine. Freshmen Jillian Ford and Grace Hunt have combined for 15 goals on the season thus far.
• Maio leads the way with 54 draw controls won, while Delano and has caused 18 turnovers for the Purple and White. Martin also leads NU with 40 groundballs.
• Andrea Francisco has played just over 720 minutes after the 17 games this season, making 96 saves for a 4-9-0 record.  Amanda Yavorek has made 34 saves in 292 minutes of play, posting a goals against average of 11.70 and a save percentage of .374.
 
CAREER BESTS
• Sophomore goalie Andrea Francisco made a career-high 12 saves during the Niagara's game against Marist while Amanda Yavorek made a career best eight saves in NU's loss to Ohio State.
• In Niagara's win over Quinnipiac, Erin Patenaude scored a career-high four goals while Molly Gray added three assists to her three-goal effort for a career-high six points. Patenaude also contributed a career-high four assists against Canisius on Wednesday, April 15.
• Niagara scored a season-high in goals with an 18-12 victory over the Manhattan Jaspers while Carrie-Jo Farrugia and sophomore Taylor Wolf both set career-highs with six goals apiece.
 
TEAM STATS
• The Purple Eagles have scored 159 goals in the 17 games this season, seven of which were in double figures.  The team's best offensive output came in the win over Manhattan (April 18) where the team scored a season-high in goals (18) and assists (10).  The last time NU put together an 18-plus goal effort was on March 20, 2014 when the Purple and White handed the Bonnies an 18-13 beating.
• The team is averaging 9.35 goals per game while attempting 23.1 shots per game. Niagara also has 76 assists this season.
• Defensively, Niagara has allowed 12.53 goals per game with the opposition taking 26.8 shots per contest.  
• The Purple Eagles have picked up 319 ground balls and caused 137 turnovers.
 
MAKING HISTORY
 • Senior Carrie-Jo Farrugia will leave NU ranked in the top-10 on Niagara's single-season goals and points list and will be in the top-10 of Niagara's career goals, assists and points record. 
• The attacker currently sits in third with 100 total goals and 156 points.

LAST TIME OUT
• The Purple Eagles fell to the Siena Saints by a score of 10-9 on April 22 at Siena Turf Field in the final game of the regular season.
• Siena held 29-19 advantage in the shot department and a slight 22-21 edge in groundballs. Goaltender Andrea Francisco started the contest for the Purple and White, making six saves, while fellow teammate Amanda Yavorek made three stops on the afternoon.
• The Purple Eagles finished the regular season with a 6-11 overall record, and a 3-5 MAAC mark. Niagara's six victories mark the most regular season wins for the first time since 2006. 

ABOUT MONMOUTH
• Monmouth is coming off an 8-7 victory over Iona on Wednesday, Apr. 22. Offensively, Monmouth was led by sophomore Claudia LaMarca who had a trio of goals while Allison Stathius had a pair of goals and an assist. Stathius also had two caused turnovers and four draw controls while junior Marial Pierce had a goal and an assist in the game. Goalie Katie Donohoe had eight saves and five ground balls in the win.
• Overall, Pierce leads the team with 44 points (27 goals, 17 assists), while Olivia Higson (30 goals, five assists) and Stathius (28 goals, seven assists) are tied for second on the team in points.
• Katie Donohoe has played the bulk of the minutes in net, accumulating a .456 save percentage to go along with an 8.34 goals against average on the season.
 
ALL-TIME VS. THE HAWKS
• Saturday's game will be the fourth time the two sides face each other, with the all-time series record falling in favor of Monmouth, 2-1.
• Last season, Niagara defeated Monmouth, 12-8, at the Hawks' home field. However, MU claimed a 12-7 victory against the Purple Eagles this season at Niagara Field.
• This will be the first time the Purple Eagles and Hawks have faced off against each other in the MAAC Tournament.

ADVANCING IN THE TOURNAMENT
• Niagara clinched a spot in the MAAC championships for the first time since 2003. If the Purple Eagles beat Monmouth on Saturday, NU will advance to the MAAC Semifinals against No. 1 seed Canisius on Friday, May 1 at 4:30 p.m.

Stay connected with the Purple Eagles through social media. Follow Niagara Athletics on Twitter @NUPurpleEagles and for in-game updates @NiagaraWLAX. Check in with the Purple Eagles on Facebook/PurpleEagles and on Instagram @NUPurpleEagles.