LEWISTON, N.Y. – With less than eight seconds left in overtime, senior Crystal Porter lofted the game-winning shot to give Canisius a 68-66 win over rival Niagara at the Gallagher Center on Thursday night. With the win the Griffs improved to 9-11 and 4-7 in MAAC play, while Niagara fell to 6-14 and 4-7 in MAAC play. The Blue and Gold also took a commanding 11.5-4.5 lead in annual Battle of the Bridge competition.

With the score tied 59-59 at the conclusion of regulation, the Purple Eagles and Griffs had a overtime tug-of-war with the Griffs taking a two point lead with 29 seconds left in the frame. Niagara tied it up however, as Kaylee Stroemple tossed in a layup to notch it at 66-66.

The Blue and Gold called a timeout following the make to set up one final play, as Porter dashed into the paint following the break, and gave Canisius its ninth win of the year.

Porter paced the team with 22 points, one shy of her career-high. She also chipped in eight boards and six assists. Also reaching double-figures for the Blue and Gold was Margret Halfdanardottir who notched 19 points, and two rebounds.

Tamara Miskovic also played a huge role in the Canisius attack, dishing out a career-best nine assists and scored three points.

For Niagara Tiffany Corselli scored 24 points and added two rebounds and four assists. Stroemple secured a double-double with 11 points and 15 rebounds, while Sam Lapszynski (10 points) and Taylor McKay (13 points) also reached double-digits.

Canisius started the game strong, opening on a 6-0 run and forcing the Purple Eagles to call a quick timeout with 7:45 left in the frame. Lauren D'Hont, Porter and Abby Schwenk all notched buckets during the stretch.

A pair of Lapszynski free throw makes mid way through the quarter gave Niagara the first points of the game and sparked a 27-4 run the rest of the way, as the Purple Eagles staked claim to a big 27-13 advantage. Corselli got hot from beyond the arc and drained five treys to spur the run,

Niagara notched the first bucket of the second half, and got the lead out to 29-13 before Canisius took control. The Blue and Gold went on a 7-0 run to force a Niagara timeout early in the frame. The run pushed the score to 29-20.

The Griffs continued that confidence throughout the stanza, ending the frame on a 18-2 run, highlighted by a coast-to-coast layup by Miskovic in the final second to tie it at 31-31.

The Griffs opened up the third quarter edging Niagara 10-7 headed into the media timeout, as Halfdanardottir drilled a pair of treys to spark the run and pushed the score out to 41-38.

However, as was the case in the first half, Niagara started a run of its own, outscoring the Griffs 8-4 with 1:09 left in the stanza to take the lead 46-45.

With the score 48-45 Welch tied the game briefly in the final minute but a Stroemple bucket in the final second, gave Niagara the 50-48 lead head into the fourth quarter.

The two teams locked down defensively as the squads scored a combined 15 points in the final quarter of regulation. The Griffs appeared to have taken the lead for good, as Halfdanardottir hit a trey with 43 seconds left in the game, to push the score 59-57. However Mckay forced the overtime period, hitting a jumper with 23 seconds remaining.

In overtime, Niagara scored the first three points as McKay drained a jumper and Lapszynksi hit a free throw opportunity to go up by three. Halfdanardottir evened the score with her trey later in the frame and used two free-throw makes to take the lead before Stroemple's bucket set up the dramatic finish.