ANN ARBOR, MI. – The Purple Eagles lacrosse team matched the defensive intensity of the Michigan Wolverines early in the non-conference matchup on Tuesday afternoon. The Michigan offense picked up midway through the first period as Niagara eventually fell 13-1 at Michigan Stadium.
 
Sarah Arndt scored the lone goal for Niagara, while Andrea Francisco made eight saves in goal. Defensively, the Purple Eagles received strong performances from Bailey Collins (four caused turnovers, one ground ball), Elizabeth Benedict (two ground balls, two caused turnovers), and Kara Martin (three ground balls, one caused turnover).

"Today we held strong defensively, but were unable to capitalize on our opportunities on the offensive end of the field," head coach Wendy Stone said. "We will work to clean up our play with the ball next time out."
 
Both Niagara (6-7, 2-2 MAAC) and Michigan played tough defense right out of the gate, as it took almost 14 minutes for the game's first goal to be scored. The Purple Eagles were the first to cede a goal, as Michigan's Tess Korten found the back of the net at the 16:02 mark, starting a four-goal Michigan run.
 
With 8:02 to play before halftime, Arndt found a hole in the Michigan defense and beat Wolverines goalkeeper Allison Silber high to give Niagara its first goal. The Wolverines would put up two more goals before the end of the first period, taking a 6-1 lead to halftime.
 
Michigan (6-8, 0-2 Big Ten) turned to Mira Shane in goal for the second half. The freshman made two early point-blank saves, including a free position stop on Niagara's leading scorer Caroline Crump, before the Wolverines scored 2:59 into the second period to make it 7-1. Shane would finish the second period with five saves as the Purple Eagles put five of their eight shots of the period on goal. Francisco matched that effort with five second-period saves for Niagara, but the Wolverines found the back of the net seven times to take the 13-1 win.
 
Niagara has four games remaining in the regular season, two each at home and on the road, all in conference play. The Purple Eagles travel to Manhattan on Saturday, April 16 looking to end their two-game losing streak in a matchup with the Jaspers. Opening draw is set for 11:00 a.m.
 
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