LAST TIME OUT
• Sophomore Rachel Ryan tallied a career-best five goals to help the Canisius women's lacrosse program earn a 15-10 victory over rival Niagara, on Wednesday afternoon. 
• The Blue and Gold used a four-goal run at the tail end of the first half to stake claim to a 8-4 lead at the midway point of the contest.
• The Griffs kept the pressure up in the second half, pushing its lead to seven goals, the largest advantage of the contest, as Ryan tallied her fifth of the game with just over three minutes left in regulation.
• The offense was spread up and down the Griffs lineup with three players boasting five-or-more points. 
• Junior Jourdan Roemer paced all point scorers with two goals and four assists, for six points. Senior Jen Reininger joined Ryan, as she scored five goals.
• Sophomore Bryar Cummings also tallied two goals and one assist, and senior Lauren Smolensky chipped in a goal and an assist.
• The MAAC's leading goal scorer Rachel MacCheyne was held in check for most of the game, finishing with a goal and two assists. Caroline Crump was the team's leader in points with three goals and one assist.

A TRADITION UNLIKE ANY OTHER
• As we head into the final two games of the MAAC season, and teams jockey for seeding, Canisius has punched its ticket to the 2018 conference championship.
• With its win over Quinnipiac last Saturday, the Blue and Gold clinched a berth into the tournament for the 11th-straight season. 
• Canisius was the first team to have its ticket punched, as the squad finished the season with a 6-2 record and a four-way tie for first place. 
•  With its win over Niagara on Wednesday, Canisius secured the fourth seed in the tournament, and hosts the Purple Eagles in the 

SCOUTING CANISIUS
• The Golden Griffins begin their title defense on Saturday, as the Blue and Gold host the Purple Eagles at the Demske Sports Complex for the first round of the MAAC Championship. 
• The Blue and Gold earned a share of the regular season title finishing the year with an 9-8 record and a 6-2 confrence record. 
• Canisius has been led offensively by Jourdan Roemer, who comes into the contest with 74 points (46 goals and 28 assists). 
• Roemer's 74 points leads the conference in total points and points per game as she is averaging 4.35 per contest. 
• Not far behind is Jen Reininger who has tallied 46 goals and nine assists for 55 points. 
• The Blue and Gold has also received goal scoring from Allie Stewart (23 goals) and three assists), Lauren Smolenksy (10 goals and 13 assists) and Bryar Cummings (18 goals and one assist) 
• Marissa Malvaso and Miranda Malvaso have continued to get stronger with each game, as the freshmen have been strong complimentary pieces in their first year.
• Marissa Malvaso has tallied 12 goals and two assists, while Miranda Malvaso has tallied three goals. 
• Rachel Ryan has become bigger part of the team's offense boasting a career-best nine goals. 
• Reininger, aside from goal scoring, has been all over the stat sheet, leading the team in ground balls with 57, draw controls with 94 and caused turnovers with 26.
• Reininger is ranked 10th in the nation in ground balls with a 3.35 average. 
• Rebecca VanLaeken has been one of the nation's best goaltenders, ranking second in the country in saves (201) and third in saves per game (11.82). 
• VanLaeken comes into the game with a 11.88 goals against average and a .502 save percentage. 

NOTING NIAGARA
• Niagara finished the season with an 8-9 overall mark and a 5-3 MAAC record.
• Canisius spoiled the Purple Eagle's chance at the No. 2 seed with its 15-10 victory on Wednesday. 
• In the regular season, Niagara's offense had the second-highest goal count (207) in the MAAC. Their 12.18 goals per game was the third-best average in the conference.
• Niagara took more shots (524) than any other MAAC school. They also ranked third in shots per game (30.82).
• Rachel MacCheyne finished with 73 points and 4.29 points per game, the second-highest totals in the MAAC. She also finished tied for second with goals (54) and goals per game (3.18).
• Niagara was the only school with two players in the top five in draw controls. MacCheyne has won 108 draws (second) while Alexandra Higgins has won 88 (fifth).

SERIES HISTORY VS. NIAGARA
• Saturday will be the 26th meeting between the Griffs and Purple Eagles, and Canisius holds a 15-10 record all-time. 
• While Niagara has gotten the better of the Blue and Gold at the Demske Sports Complex, Canisius holds a 8-3 record in Lewiston, N.Y.
• The series has been an odd one with Niagara reeling off 10-straight wins before Canisius won its first game in 2005, and hasn't lost since. 
• Canisius took on Niagara in the MAAC tournament last season, en route to the conference title, defeating the Purple Eagles in the semifinals, 16-6.
• In that contest, Erica Evans led the way with four goals and two assists, while Jen Reininger, Allie Stewart, and Jourdan Roemer all posted three points and Lauren Smolensky registered two. 

RYAN BREAKS OUT
• A key player to focus in on Saturday may be Rachel Ryan, who tallied a career-best five goals against the Purple Eagles on Wednesday. 
• So far she has recorded nine goals this season, becoming more of a focal point on offense midway through the year.
• Her previous season-best was four goals last season.