A slow start made for a big finish, as the Quinnipiac women’s basketball team defeated the Niagara Purple Eagles 76-57 on Saturday afternoon at the People’s United Center. 

The Purple Eagles came ready to play to start the contest. They outscored the Bobcats 22-13 in the first quarter and forced Quinnipiac to commit nine turnovers in the quarter. Niagara junior guard Angel Parker was serving buckets to the Bobcats in a variety of ways. She ended the first half with 18 points and finished the game with 30.

The Bobcats didn’t let the early deficit deter them. They outscored the Purple Eagles 14-11 in the second quarter and went into halftime trailing 33-27. Junior forward Cur’Tiera Haywood made it rain from three in the first half as she kept the Bobcats afloat. She ended the half with 11 points and was perfect from downtown shooting three attempts from the arc and making all three. 

Quinnipiac came out of the locker room for the second half and took complete control of the game. The Bobcats outscored Niagara 30-14 in the third quarter and went into the fourth leading the Purple Eagles 57-47. Head coach Tricia Fabbri made the message very clear to her team at halftime.

“We just said we needed to attack a little bit more offensively and settle down against their pressure,” Fabbri said. “I think we cleaned up our system a little bit and just a couple of things we were running we just tweaked. We just cleaned up, got our spacing back and we were able to reverse the ball and go forward against their pressure.” 

Senior guard Mackenzie DeWees only recorded seven points in the first half, but she scored 17 in the second half to total a new career high of 24 points.

“At Fairfield it felt like there was a lid on the bucket, but my teammates trust me, and they trust every shot I shoot, so with their confidence behind me I felt relentless tonight,” DeWees said. 

The reigning MAAC Player of the Year also contributed nine rebounds, five assists and three steals in the 19-point victory. 

Heading into the fourth quarter the gas tank wasn’t even close to empty for the Bobcats as they outscored Niagara 19-10 to grab the win, 76-57. 

Bobcats junior center Mikala Morris recorded her sixth straight double-double on Saturday with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Morris had high praise for first year Grace LaBarge who checked into the ballgame for the first time midway through the second quarter. LaBarge made an immediate impact on defense which lifted the Bobcats’ spirits on the bench. 

“I love Grace so much,” Morris said. “I’ve seen her since the summer and when she first came in, she was a baby deer. You hit her and she’s going to the floor crying and now she’s so tough and feisty, she’s such a great player. Four years from now she’s going to be one of the top ones here.”

The Bobcats will look to gain more momentum on Thursday, Feb. 24, as they travel to Marist to take on the Red Foxes in a MAAC duel.