Niagara University, N.Y.—The Niagara women's basketball team earned a 91-86 win over Le Moyne in the opening round of the WNIT at the Gallagher Center on Friday night.
First Quarter
Niagara jumped out to a 12-0 lead in the first 2:18 of the game. After the first quarter Niagara led 22-21 as Angel Parker led all scorers with nine points on 4-5 shooting from the field while making a free throw. Amelia Strong and Destiny Strother both had six points as Strong was 3-7 from the field while Strother was 2-2 from three. Niagara forced eight turnovers in the quarter while scoring 10 points off turnovers and 10 points of fast breaks. Niagara shot 45% from the field while limiting the Dolphins to 36.4% shooting. The Purple Eagles took the lead eight seconds into the game and held the lead for the rest of the quarter. Saige Glover led all players with five rebounds in just over four minutes.
Second Quarter
The second quarter saw just 23 combined points with Niagara edging out the Dolphins 12-11. Five different Purple Eagles scored with Aaliyah Parker and An. Parker each having three points while Chardonnay Hartley, Kylie Buckley, and Glover each had two points. Niagara pulled down 11 rebounds in the quarter while Aa. Parker, Glover, and Lore Porter collected two rebounds. Strong, An. Parker, Strother, Marlie Dickerson, and Ary Hicks all had one rebound in the quarter. Niagara forced nine turnovers in the quarter while scoring nine points off turnovers.
At the half
Niagara led 34-32 at the half as An. Parker led all scorers with 12 points. Strong and Strother each had six points. The Purple Eagles had 17 forced turnovers while scoring 19 points off turnovers. Niagara went to the paint for 16 points in the paint. Aa. Parker had three blocks in the first half which led the game. The Purple Eagles had four assists in the half as Hicks had two assists while Aa. Parker and Dickerson each had an assist.
Third Quarter
The Dolphins took a one-point lead in the fourth quarter as they outscored Niagara 27-24 in the third quarter. Niagara was led by Strong and Aa. Parker with seven points each while Strother hit a pair of threes. The Purple Eagles forced six turnovers in the third quarter while Aa. Parker and Strother each came away with a steal. Niagara scored 10 of their 24 points in the paint while five points came on the fast break. Niagara led for 7:36 of the third quarter while there were three lead changes and two ties. Strong had four rebounds to lead Niagara while An. Parker had two rebounds. The Purple Eagles had seven assists in the quarter with An. Parker leading the team with three assists.
Fourth Quarter
The Purple Eagles scored 33 points in the fourth quarter to secure the win. Both Aa. Parker and An. Parker had nine points in the quarter as all nine of An. Parker's came from the free throw line. Niagara as a team went 19-21 from the free throw line in the quarter. Niagara scored 11 points on the fast break in the quarter. The Purple Eagles outrebounded the Dolphins 10-8 in the quarter with Niagara pulling down eight rebounds on the defensive side. Strong had three rebounds to lead Niagara while Glover, Strother, and Aa. Parker each had two. The Purple Eagles once again had three blocks in the quarter as Aa. Parker, Alyssa Rossignol, and Glover each had a block.
Niagara Notes
· It is the first time in Niagara's NCAA Division I era that Niagara has won a postseason tournament game.
· It was also the first time in Niagara NCAA Division I era that the Purple Eagles have hosted a postseason tournament game.
· Four Purple Eagles finished with double digit scoring as An. Parker had a game high 23 points. Aa. Parker had 19 points while Strong and Strother each had 17 points.
· Strong notched her first career double double as she had 17 points and 10 rebounds in the win.
· Glover came down with 10 rebounds for her fourth straight double digit rebound game. She has came down with 10 or more boards in six games this season.
· An. Parker broke the program record for games played as she appeared in 125th career game as a Purple Eagle. With her 23 points she is currently at 1,498 career points and just two points away from becoming just the seventh Purple Eagle to score 1,500 points in a Niagara uniform.
· The Purple Eagles forced 26 turnovers in the win while having 12 steals. An. Parker led the way with four steals while both Strother and Dickerson had two steals.
· Niagara is now 8-0 against Le Moyne all-time. It was the first-time schools matched up at the NCAA Division I level.
· The Purple Eagles improve to 12-3 at the Gallagher Center this season.
· Niagara scored 29 points off turnovers and are averaging 26.2 points off turnovers this season.
· The Purple Eagles scored 26 points on the fast break, it is the eighth time this season they have scored 20+ on fast breaks.
· Niagara scored 91 points in the game which is a new season high. They have scored 90+ points in two games this season, Niagara is 21-7 when scoring more than 60 points and 11-0 when scoring 80 or more points.
· The Purple Eagles had a season-high six blocks in the win.
Up Next
The Purple Eagles look to advance to the Super 16 round of the WNIT as they take on Vermont in the WNIT second round on Monday, Mar. 25 in Burlington, Vermont. Niagara is 2-2 against Vermont in program history, the teams last played in the 2005-06 season.
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