Women's Basketball
Saturday, January 14, 2023
Rider Broncs (5-11, 2-5 MAAC) vs. Niagara Purple Eagles (6-9, 5-2 MAAC)
Location: Lawrenceville, NJ (Alumni Gym)
Tip: 2:00 p.m.
Live Stats: GoBroncs.com
Broadcast: ESPN+
Radio: 107.7 TheBronc
Twitter: @RiderWBB
 
 
What You Need To Know
- Saturday afternoon's game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
- Following the game, the team will be signing autographs for all fans.
 
- Last time out, Rider was tied with Canisius 53-53 with under two minutes to play before Rider went on an 8-3 run to close out the game and earn a 61-56 victory. Makayla Firebaugh (Winchester, VA/James Wood) led the Broncs with 16 points in the game.
 
- Amanda Mobley (Coopersburg, PA/Southern Lehigh) currently leads the MAAC and ranks 11^th nationally at 6.5 assists per game. She set her career-high with 12 assists at Canisius, then tied that mark against Saint Peter's.
 
- Rider went 1-1 at the MAAC/ASUN Challenge, defeating North Florida 76-67 before falling to Eastern Kentucky 85-64. Firebaugh averaged 21.0 points and 5.0 rebounds while shooting 55.0% from behind the arc to earn MAAC Player of the Week honors.
 
- Rider was picked to finish tied for sixth in the MAAC Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Broncs return four starters and all but three members of last year's team.
 
- Firebaugh was named Preseason Third-Team All-MAAC. The 2020-21 MAAC Co-Rookie of the Year averaged 11.0 points and 4.4 rebounds per game last season. Her 31 points against Niagara were the most in a single game by any player in the MAAC last season.
 
- Rider is one of just nine teams in Division I without a true freshman on the roster. They just faced one of the other nine teams at the MAAC/ASUN Challenge when the Broncs battled Eastern Kentucky. The remaining seven teams are Charlotte, Coastal Carolina, CSUN, Gonzaga, Green Bay, Norfolk St, and Valpo. The Broncs are one of just five teams that returns 12 or more players from last season's roster, joining Columbia, Western Michigan, Liberty, and Weber State.
 
- Rider has made the MAAC Semifinals in five of the last six seasons. The Broncs were named MAAC Champions for 2019-20 for the first time in program history.
 
- Raphaela Toussaint (Kingston, Ontario/Lincoln Prep) led the Broncs with five double-doubles last season. She earned her first double-double of the season against North Florida with 13 points and 13 rebounds.
 
- The Broncs led the MAAC and ranked 42^nd nationally with an average of 4.2 blocks per game last season. Anna Ekerstedt (Varberg, Sweden/Marks Gymnasieskola) averaged 1.50 blocks per contest last season. Even with Ekerstedt sidelined due to injury, Rider blocked nine shots against NJIT.
 
- Nearly two-thirds of Jessika Schiffer's (Iserlohn, Germany/Deutschhaus Gymnasium Würzburg) shots last season (179-277) came from three-point range. 95 of her 136 shots this season have come from deep. Schiffer scored a season-high 19 points against Lehigh.
 
- The Broncs are second in the MAAC and rank 86^th nationally, knocking down 7.2 threes a game. Maya Hyacienth (Nottingham, United Kingdom/City of London Academy) leads the conference in three-point percentage at 47.6%. Schiffer is second in the MAAC with 36 made triples. In addition, Firebaugh has 35, Mobley has 12, Toussaint has 11, and Hyacienth has 10.
 
- ToniRenee Blanford (Montclair, NJ/The Patrick School[Union College]) scored a season-high 11 points and added a season-high eight rebounds at Seton Hall.
 
- Niagara holds a slim 29-27 lead in the all-time series, including a 74-67 victory in the first meeting this season. Niagara shot 57.9% from three in the first meeting, led by 27 points from Aaliyah Parker on 10-for-17 shooting from the field, including 4-for-5 from behind the arc. Schiffer drained four threes and led Rider with 14 points in the contest.
 
- The Purple Eagles have bounced back from a slow start, winning five of their last six games, including victories over Manhattan, Quinnipiac, and Fairfield, three of the preseason favorites in the league. Aaliyah and Angel Parker are currently second and fourth in the MAAC in scoring at 17.0 and 15.8 points per game, respectively.