Niagara University, N.Y. — Niagara women's lacrosse defeated Merrimack 17-7 to stay undefeated in conference play in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference action Wednesday afternoon.
The Purple Eagles improved to 7-7 overall and 6-0 in the MAAC. Merrimack dropped to 4-11 and 1-5 in conference play.
Niagara wasted little time, scoring four of the first five goals to take command early. Olivia Ng got things started at the 10:35 mark, and the Purple Eagles led 1-0 before Merrimack's Hailey Schider answered with a player-up goal at 6:50, the lone Warrior score of the opening period, off an assist from Lindsay Atkinson.
Niagara responded immediately. Kensington Keane scored at 6:04, Michaela Delles followed at 4:50 with a Keane assist, and Maive Partlow capped the quarter with a rebound goal at 3:55 to send Niagara into the second up 4-1.
Maddy Gill scored off a Delles assist just 35 seconds into the period to push the lead to 5-1. But Merrimack answered with three straight, Schider at 10:29, Atkinson at 9:40 off a Sophia Ingenito feed, and Schider again on a player-up free position shot at 8:00, to cut the deficit to 5-4.
Gill, playing a player down at the time, won the draw and found the cage herself at 7:24 for a shorthanded goal, pushing the lead back to 6-4. The Purple Eagles never looked back, scoring three more before halftime. Ashleigh Blanding found the net at 5:27, Avery Olschefskie scored off a Delles assist at 4:33, and Partlow added her second of the game at 3:09. Niagara led 9-4 at the break.
Merrimack opened the period with a Schider goal at 12:16, her fourth of the game, cutting the deficit to 9-5. Niagara answered quickly when Olschefskie converted a free-position shot at 11:18 to make it 10-5. Merrimack's Mia Estelle pulled one back on her own free position attempt at 9:50, and Ng closed out the quarter's scoring with a Delles assist at 5:57 to give Niagara an 11-6 advantage heading into the fourth.
Delles opened the period with a goal at 12:35, and after Merrimack's Brooke Eggleston scored off a Lindie Brinkman assist at 11:36, Ng converted a free-position shot at 8:05 to push the lead to 13-7. Clara Gilbert scored at 5:50 off a Hannah Kent assist, and then Annie Tanner took over down the stretch, scoring twice in the final three minutes.
Tanner scored at 1:11 and then set up Lily Harris for the final goal with 23 seconds left to complete the 17-7 final.
Game Notes
Niagara is now 3-0 all-time against Merrimack
Tanner and Gilbert both scored their first collegiate goals
Ng grew her multi-goal streak to four straight games
Sydney Huhtala set a season-high with six cause turnovers and six ground balls
Huhtala recorded her 200th career caused turnover
The 17 goals were the Purple Eagles' most this season
