DELAND, Fl. – The Niagara women's lacrosse team wrapped up a three-game road trip at 2-1 by securing a 16-14 win against the Stetson Hatters on Friday afternoon. Grace Hunt tied her season- and career-high with seven points, leading the Purple Eagles with two goals and five assists. Alexandra Higgins set a career-high with 11 draw controls as Niagara held a commanding 25-7 advantage in that category.
 
Game Summary

• Final Score: Niagara 16, Stetson 14
• Offensive Leaders: Grace Hunt (2G, 5A), Caroline Crump (4G, 1A), Rachel MacCheyne (4G)
• Defensive Leaders: Alexandra Higgins (2 GB, 11 DC, 2 CT), Jillian Ford (3 GB, 5 DC, 1 CT), Kara Martin (2 GB, 3 DC), Audrey Fithall (3 GB, 2 DC)
• In Goal: Andrea Francisco (3-2) – 14 GA, 10 SV
• Records: Niagara – 3-2; Stetson – 0-5
• Attendance: 168

 
Game Recap

• Niagara opened the game on a 3-1 run with goals by Alexis Morales, Rachel MacCheyne, and Grace Hunt, but the Hatters came back to take a 4-3 lead with just over 14 minutes left in the first period.
• Shea Swartwout's first career goal tied the game for Niagara at the 13:15 mark and keyed a three-goal run, as MacCheyne and Caroline Crump tallied Purple Eagles goals to make it a 6-4 Niagara lead.
• Stetson came back to tie the game for a third time at 6-6, but Crump returned the lead to Niagara, and MacCheyne's third goal of the afternoon sent Niagara into halftime on top by a score of 8-6.
• Niagara rattled off three goals at the top of the second period to seize control with an 11-6 lead. Morales opened the second-period scoring with a free-position goal before Hunt set up goals by Samantha Brill and Crump to extend the lead.
• Not to be turned away, the Hatters went on a three-goal run to make it 11-9 with 20 minutes to play. Two Niagara goals separated by eight seconds made it 13-9 as Crump set up Brill before Jillian Ford assisted on Hunt's second goal of the afternoon.
• Hunt picked up two more assists over the course of the second period on goals by Audrey Fithall and MacCheyne before Crump scored her fourth of the day with 10:21 to play to make it 16-12. Stetson was able to draw within two goals with 6:37 to play, but goalkeeper Andrea Francisco stopped the only shot on goal she saw over the remainder of the period as Niagara held on for the 16-14 win.

 
Inside the Numbers

• Alexandra Higgins set a career-high with 11 draw controls at Stetson. She finished the week with 18 after collecting seven in a 12-8 loss at Jacksonville on Tuesday.
• With 31 draw controls in five games, Higgins ranks in the top 10 of the NCAA with 6.2 draw controls per game.
• Grace Hunt is up to 17 assists on the season after tallying a game-high five at Stetson. Hunt's 32 career assists are seventh in program history. The Niagara program record for assists in a season is 38, set by Sandra Gallegos in 2002 (13 games).
• Caroline Crump set a season-high with five points at Stetson, scoring four goals and one assist. Crump made Second Team All-MAAC in 2016 after leading Niagara with 32 goals, 16 assists, and 48 points as a freshman.
• Crump and Rachel MacCheyne tied for a game-high with four goals, while Hunt's five assists led all players on Friday.
• Andrea Francisco led Niagara with six ground balls Friday, while Audrey Fithall and Jillian Ford each had three.
• Niagara held a commanding 25-7 advantage in draw controls against Stetson. In addition to the 11 by Higgins, MacCheyne and Ford each had a season-high five draw controls.

 
Up Next

• The Purple Eagles return to Niagara Field on Monday, March 13 to host the Yale Bulldogs at 2 p.m.

 
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