Hamden, CT—The Niagara women's basketball team open its final road trip of the regular season as they visited Quinnipiac on Thursday night. The Purple Eagles earned the season sweep of Quinnipiac as they won 63-56.
Game Recap
First Quarter

• In the opening quarter the Bobcats jumped out to a 14-10 lead despite the Purple Eagles holding them to 3-12 shooting. They went 8-11 from the free throw line.
• Aaliyah Parker opened the game with eight points to lead all scorers in the first quarter. She also pulled down four rebounds. Angel Parker and Saige Glover had the other points for Niagara as they hit free throws.
• The Purple Eagles forced eight turnovers in the first quarter as they also had four steals. Angel was credited with two steals while Aaliyah and Maddy Yelle each had a steal.

Second Quarter

• Niagara responded in the second quarter as they outscored the Bobcats 18-12 in the second quarter.
• Angel took over in the second quarter as she had a game high nine points which included a layup as the buzzer went off to end the quarter. She went 4-8 from the field while hitting a three.
• Niagara forced six turnovers while committing just two in the frame. The Purple Eagles scored eight points off turnovers and did not allow Quinnipiac to score on its forced turnovers.
• Aaliyah had three points in the frame while Nickelle O'Neil and Shelby Fiddler both his threes in the second stanza.
• At the half, Niagara led 28-26 while Aaliyah had a game high 11, Angel had 10 points in the first half.

Third Quarter

• Niagara built on the lead in the third quarter as they outscored the Bobcats 19-9 in the third quarter. Jade Rutledge led the way for the Purple Eagles as she had six points. She went 2-4 from the field and drained a pair of free throws.
• The Purple Eagles pulled down nine rebounds which included six on the offensive side of the court. Aaliyah and Glover each had two while Amelia Strong, Rutledge, Angel, O'Neil, and Lore Porter each had a board.
• Niagara forced 12 turnovers in the frame and scored 14 points off the 12 turnovers. O'Neil had two steals while four other players notched steals.
• The Purple Eagles led the for the entire quarter while having a seven point scoring run at the 8:36 mark.

Fourth Quarter

• Quinnipiac outscored the Purple Eagles 23-16 in the fourth quarter but the Purple Eagles held on the in the fourth quarter.
• Aaliyah had a game high seven points in the fourth quarter as she went 2-3 from the field and 3-4 from the free throw line. As a team Niagara went 6-7 from the free throw line.
• With seven seconds left in the fourth quarter, Niagara missed a free throw that was rebounded by Quinnipiac as they trailed by three. Rutledge stole the ball back and found Ary Hicks. Hicks was fouled and hit both free throws to ice the game.
• The Purple Eagles also had two blocks in the fourth quarter as Rutledge and O'Neil both had a block.

Niagara Notes

• With the win the Purple Eagles secured their first season sweep of Quinnipiac in program history. It was also the first time Niagara beat the Bobcats away from the Gallagher Center. Niagara has now won three of the last five games against Quinnipiac.
• Aaliyah had a game high 22 points in the game, while also pulling down a game high 10 rebounds. It was her ninth double double of the season.
• Niagara forced 30 turnovers, it is the 15^th time this season that the team has forced 30 or more turnovers in a game this season.
• The Purple Eagles scored 28 points off turnovers, this season they are averaging 27.0 points per game off turnovers.
• Niagara had 30 points in the paint, it is the 14^th game this season that Niagara has had 30 or more points in the paint. Niagara is averaging 29.84 points per game in the paint. The Purple Eagles have had 30 or more points in the paint in five straight games.
• The Purple Eagles now have 13 wins in MAAC play, it is tied for most in program history. In the 2002-03 season Niagara went 13-5 in conference play. Niagara has three game left this season. The Purple Eagles have only hit double digit MAAC wins in five seasons prior to this season.
• Aaliyah is still leading the MAAC in scoring as she is averaging 17.5 points per game this season. Angel is averaging 16.4 points per game and is second in the MAAC in scoring. Aaliyah is leading the MAAC in steals while Angel is second and Nickelle third.
• Niagara had 15 steals in the game and is averaging 15.72 steals per game which leads the MAAC and the nation. Niagara has a 9.6 turnover margin and is leading the MAAC and country.
• The Purple Eagles are now 14-3 this season when they score 60 or more points. They are also 8-0 this season when allowing less than 60 points.

Up Next

• Niagara closes out the road portion of the regular season as they face Marist on Saturday at 2 PM.