NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. - Colgate led by one after two quarters but Niagara surged in the second half to defeat the Raiders 74-65 at the Gallagher Center Tuesday evening.
Taylor Langan's layup on Colgate's first possession set the tone early for the Raiders' strong first half. Colgate's next score came off a
Taylor Golembiewski steal, fast break, and offensive rebound and uncontested layup by
Alexa Naessens. Another Langan layup, a couple of
Alexa Brodie pull-up jumpers, a long-range three from
Sophia Diehl, and a bounce pass from Brodie to Diehl for a layup had Colgate down by one, 16-15, at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter belonged to the Raiders. Brodie started things off with a jumper from the right wing. A Lore Porter foul sent Brodie to the foul line, where she made one of two free throws to tie the game at 18. Brodie returned to the line after being fouled behind the arc by Ally Haar, and sank all three free throws to put the Raiders ahead 21-8. Golembiewski on a fast break extended the Colgate lead to five and forced a Niagara timeout. Diehl, assisted by Brodie, connected on a three-pointer to give the Raiders their largest lead of the night, 26-18. Niagara began to claw its way back and pulled within two, 26-24, before Jenna Paul hit a jumper for her first bucket of the game. Langan converted a Niagara turnover into a layup and a chance for a three-point play with a blocking call on Lore Porter. Langan made the foul shot to give the Raiders a 31-26 lead. The Purple Eagles closed the gap to two before Brodie drove the lane and banked in a layup off the glass for her fourth field goal. Niagara's Aaliyah Parker hit a three-pointer at the end of the half to cut the Raiders lead to one, 33-32.
Colgate came out of the gate first with a Langan lay-up to start the third quarter. It was a closely contested period, thanks to defensive pressure applied by both teams. Langan added another three point play with a layup and a free throw after a blocking foul called on Niagara's Angel Parker. Paul assisted Tiasia McMillan on a layup for her first points of the night. The Raiders had their share of foul shot opportunities down the stretch, with Golembiewski (2-of-2), McMillan (1-of-2), Golembieski (2-of-2), Diehl (2-of-2), and Brodie (2-of-2) all heading to the line. McMillan's jumper as time expired cut the Raiders' deficit to 54-49 heading into the final stanza.
After an Angel Parker put the Purple Eagles ahead by seven, Brodie answered with a two-point basket to keep Colgate within reach. Then a beautiful Brodie bounce pass to Diehl for a layup made it a three point game. That was as close as Colgate would get, as Niagara opened up a 12-point advantage. But the Raiders didn't give up. Golembiewski took it end to end for a Colgate bucket. Two three-pointers by Paul and one by Ariel Loiter were too little too late.
The whistle was blown on a total of 50 personal fouls, resulting in five players fouling out down the stretch.
Brodie finished with 16 points along with a game-high seven assists; Langan and Diehl had 12 points apiece. Niagara's Aaliyah Parker led all scorers with 19 points and had a double-double with 10 rebounds.
FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Ganiyat Adeduntan
"This was not the outcome we wanted. On a positive note, I am proud of my team's overall effort. I asked them to give it their best and compete, and I felt we saw that in a lot of stretches. No failures, only feedback. There is a lot we can learn from this game. So, we will regroup and learn from this loss. The goal is to continue to get better."
UP NEXT
Colgate returns to Western New York on Saturday to face Canisius at 1 p.m.
