BRONX, N.Y. – The Niagara Purple Eagles split a pair of matches on day one of the Rose Hill Classic hosted by Fordham University. Niagara rallied from a set down to beat the host in the first match of the day before falling to Robert Morris in straight sets.

"The team showed a lot of positives today," head coach Vilis Ozols said. "The defensive intensity really set up a lot of our success. We did have numerous momentum swings and when that pendulum went our way it is very fun to be a part of.  We'll need to keep working on minimizing our errors to stop those downswings." 

Niagara 3, Fordham 1

The Purple Eagles had season-highs in hitting percentage (.212) and in aces (10) as Niagara won three straight sets to defeat the Fordham Rams (22-25, 25-17, 25-22, 25-23) in its first match of the Rose Hill Classic.

Alex Stone led NU with 10 kills while Alexis Gray had a team-high 28 assists; Rylee Hunt led a trio of Purple Eagles in double-digit digs with 20 followed by Nicole Matheis (5) who also had a match-high four aces, and Rayenne Hale with 10.

After being edged by Fordham in the opening set, the Purple Eagles responded by winning three straight sets to even their record to 2-2 on the season. NU opened the second set scoring six straight points before the Rams tied the score at 9-9. A 6-1 spurt pushed NU to a 25-17 win as the Purple Eagles finished with a match-high 15 kills in the set.

The Purple Eagles slipped past the Rams in the third set. With the score knotted at 22-22, a kill by Meghan Higley followed by a kill from Brenna DaPra and an tacking error by Fordham's Breanna Jones clinched the set.

Niagara had another strong start to a set, scoring six of the first seven points, to pull out the fourth set. However, the Purple Eagles had to hold off a late run by the Rams. Fordham cut Niagara's lead to 22-21, but consecutive kills by Melissa McGwin and Nicole Matheis gave NU some breathing room. A kill by Taylor Edmonds finished the match in favor of the Purple and White. 

Niagara 0, Robert Morris 3

The Purple Eagles (2-3) dropped their second match on the day to the Robert Morris Colonials, 25-18, 25-19, 25-12.

McGwin led Niagara in kills with eight, Gray led the team in assists with 11 and Hunt had a match-high 12 digs. Niagara was unable to get its offense on track as Robert Morris (4-2) finished with 10.5 blocks while hitting .341 for the match.

The Colonials edged the Purple Eagles in the first set; Niagara cut the score to 19-17 before RMU finished the set on a 6-1 run. In the second set, RMU pulled away again with a run. NU trailed 19-18 but the Colonials answered by recording six of the last seven points. The Colonials got off to a fast start en route to winning the third set, 25-12.
 
The Purple Eagles conclude play at the invitational on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. against Georgetown.

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