Just when Niagara appeared to be turning around their season, the schedule makers decided to give the Purple Eagles four tough MAAC games in a row to show if they could play with the big boys.

Through two games of the four game stretch, Niagara has shown some flashes but haven’t been able to get over the hump as the lost again Friday night, this time falling to Loyola (MD) 69-57.

Niagara gave the Greyhounds a great battle as the game was back and forth all night long. Neither team could put each other away until the very end when Loyola made their run to win the game.

Justin Drummond and Erik Etherly had great offensive nights for the Greyhounds, scoring 21 and 18 points respectively.

Loyola as a team shot 52.5% from the field while holding Niagara below 40%.

For Niagara, Antoine Mason and Juan’ya Green were making plays for the Purple Eagles, keeping them in the game.

Mason finished with a team high 19 points while Green regained his scoring touch, finishing with 14 points.

With the loss, Niagara drops to 9-13 (4-6) on the year.

While losses are always disappointing, the Purple Eagles have shown that they can at least compete with the big boys in the MAAC.

Niagara returns to action Sunday when they take on Manhattan in another pivotal MAAC game for the young Purple Eagles squad.