NIAGARA UNIV., N.Y. – Needing just one goal to become Niagara's all-time leading scorer, senior attack
Rachel MacCheyne obliterated the mark by pouring on seven goals and shattering the 19-year-old record of 171 set by Mary Cutia in 2000. Despite the career-high nine points (7 G, 2 A) MacCheyne supplied, Marist escaped with a 17-16 victory in overtime.
Game Recap
- After Shea Swartwout's icebreaker 1:57 into the game, Niagara appeared it would run away early, as the Purple Eagles got goals from Caroline Crump, MacCheyne, Audrey Fithall, and Crump again to go up 5-1 as the first half approached the midway mark.
- Marist narrowed the gap to 5-2, but MacCheyne and Crump each tallied again to set Niagara up with a five-goal lead.
- With 8:33 left in the first half, Alexandra Leo's first marker of the game put Niagara up, 8-4.
- The Red Foxes tied things at 8-8, but a free position goal from Fithall restored the advantage for the Purple Eagles before halftime.
- Niagara started the second half with tenacity, as another goal from Crump and two more from MacCheyne inside the opening four minutes made it 12-8 Purple Eagles. With her fourth tally, MacCheyne broke the 50-goal plateau for the year.
- A free position goal from MacCheyne with 17:41 remaining made it a 13-11 game in Niagara's favor.
- Eight minutes later, MacCheyne again converted the free position attempt to pull Niagara even with Marist, 14-14.
- Crump's fifth strike of the game with 5:25 left in regulation came with the Purple Eagles down a player and leveled the score at 15 apiece.
- MacCheyne put Niagara in front with four minutes to go with her third free position goal in 13 minutes.
Defensive Spotlight
- Crump led the squad with four caused turnovers on the day.
- Lauren Paul contributed three caused turnovers to go with two ground balls.
Coach's Corner
- Head coach Wendy Stone: "We battled today, and some really good things happened on both ends of the field. We are incredibly proud of the effort, and look forward to getting back out on the field against Iona on Saturday."
Milestones Met
- MacCheyne now has 178 career goals, the most ever by a Niagara player.
- By breaking the 50 goal barrier, MacCheyne pieced together just the fifth 50-goal season the program has ever seen. The first two came courtesy of Mary Cutia in 1999 and 2000. The other two were also MacCheyne's doing – her 56-goal campaign last season and her record-setting 60-goal year in 2017. Now at 53 goals, MacCheyne holds each of the top three scoring seasons ever by a Purple Eagle.
- Paul's two ground balls made her the eighth player in program history with 100 for her career.
- Freshman Maren Geiger became the 10th goalie in Niagara history to record 100 career saves.
Up Next
- The Purple Eagles look to keep their playoff hopes on track with a road date against Iona on April 13. Opening draw is slated for 1 p.m.
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