Moraga, CA—The Niagara Women's Basketball team fell to America East foe Maine in the second game of the Saint Mary's Thanksgiving Classic, the Purple Eagles fell 73-57.
Game Recap
First Quarter

• The Purple Eagles and Black Bears played a back and forth opening quarter as Maine had a 17-12 lead after the opening ten minutes. Maine used an eight point run to build their lead.
• Five Purple Eagles tallied points in the opening frame as Lexie Roe and Maddy Yelle both had three points to lead the team.
• Despite not scoring any points in the first MAAC leading scorer Aaliyah Parker had two steals while also pulling down a board.

Second Quarter

• Niagara started claw their way back into the game as they scored 17 points in the second quarter while allowing just 16 from Maine.
• Parker started to heat up as she went 3-5 from field and 3-4 at the line to lead the Purple Eagles with nine points.
• Jade Rutledge, Nickelle O'Neil, Yelle, and Sydney Faulcon all had two points in the frame and Niagara had 10 points in the paint.
• The Purple Eagles notched three steals and forced eight Maine turnovers, Niagara scored 10 of their 17 points off turnovers.
• At half Niagara trailed 33-29 as they looked to notch their second win of the season.

Third Quarter

• In the third quarter the two teams played just about even as Maine slightly edged Niagara 18-16 in the third.
• After nine points in the second, Parker once again put up nine points in the third quarter to have 18 points after three quarters.
• O'Neil was second on the team with four points while Marlie Dickerson pitched in two and Yelle hit a free throw for her lone point of the quarter.
• Niagara once again had 10 points from inside the paint while also scoring seven points off both turnovers and on the fast break.

Fourth Quarter

• Niagara's comeback came up short in the fourth as Maine outscored the Purple Eagles 22-12 to secure the 73-57 win.
• Parker added six points in the fourth to score a career-high 24 points, she is now averaging 18.7 points per game.
• The Purple Eagles had three steals in the fourth as O'Neil, Yelle, and Faulcon each had one.

Niagara Notes

• Parker's 24 are the most she has scored in her college career and is the most scored by a Purple Eagle this season. It is the most points a Purple Eagle has scored in a game since Angel Parker scored 30 against Quinnipiac on Feb. 19, 2022.
• Nine Purple Eagles saw the court and eight of the nine tallied a point. The graduate student duo of Yelle and O'Neil both had eight points in the loss. For O'Neil it was the most points she has scored as a Purple Eagle.
• Niagara scored 28 points in the paint, it is the second most they have had in the paint this season. Against Colgate they have 30 points in the paint including overtime.

Up Next

• The Purple Eagles return to Western New York after the weeklong road trip to face St. Bonaventure on the road in a matchup of two Little Three teams on Friday. The Purple Eagles return to the Gallagher Center on Dec. 7 as they host Buffalo for a non-conference game.