From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base
Niagara Purple Eagles
Collegiate sports club in the United States
Collegiate sports club in the United States
| Field | Value | |
|---|---|---|
| name | Niagara Purple Eagles | |
| logo | Niagara_Purple_Eagles_New_Logo.svg | |
| logo_width | 150 | |
| university | Niagara University | |
| association | NCAA | |
| conference | MAAC (primary) | |
| Atlantic Hockey America (men's ice hockey) | ||
| Northeast Conference (bowling) | ||
| division | Division I | |
| director | Simon B. Gray | |
| location | Lewiston, New York | |
| teams | 19 | |
| soccerstadium | Niagara Field | |
| baseballfield | John P. Bobo Field | |
| basketballarena | Gallagher Center | |
| icehockeyarena | Dwyer Arena | |
| golfcourse | Niagara Falls Country Club | |
| arena2 | Classic Lanes in Kenmore (bowling) | |
| mascot | Monte | |
| nickname | Purple Eagles | |
| pageurl | https://purpleeagles.com/ | |
| altlogo | [[File:Initials niagara univ.svg | 150px]] |
Atlantic Hockey America (men's ice hockey) Northeast Conference (bowling) The Niagara Purple Eagles are athletics teams that represent Niagara University in college sports. Part of the NCAA's Division I, the Purple Eagles field 19 varsity level teams. The Purple Eagles are full members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and the ice hockey-only Atlantic Hockey America, and are also members of the Northeast Conference for women's bowling. Previously, Niagara was a charter member of the Eastern College Athletic Conference-North (1979-1989). Between 1946 and 1958, Niagara was a member of the Western New York Little Three Conference.
In 2012, the women's ice hockey program was replaced by women's track and field. In 2023 women's bowling was added with a number of players from closing Medaille University, their head coach and their assistant coach.
Sports sponsored
| Niagara Purple Eagles | border=1 | color= white }}" | Men's sports | Niagara Purple Eagles | border=1 | color= white }}" | Women's sports |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baseball | Basketball | ||||||
| Basketball | Bowling | ||||||
| Cross Country | Cross Country | ||||||
| Golf | Golf | ||||||
| Ice Hockey | Lacrosse | ||||||
| Rugby | Soccer | ||||||
| Soccer | Softball | ||||||
| Swimming | Swimming | ||||||
| Tennis | Tennis | ||||||
| Track and field | |||||||
| Volleyball | |||||||
| Niagara Purple Eagles }}" | – includes both indoor and outdoor. |
Club teams
Teams competing at the club level are:
- Men's ice hockey D1 competes in the ESCHL of the ACHA.
- Men's ice hockey D2 competes in the UNYCHL of the AAU.
- Men's rugby competes in the Upstate Small College Rugby Conference (West Division) of the NSCRO.
- Women's rugby competes in the West Region Upstate New York Collegiate Rugby Conference of the NSCRO.
- Men's lacrosse competes in the Empire West D2 of the NCLL.
Former sports
Football
Main article: Niagara Purple Eagles football
Niagara first played football in 1897 and continued until suspending operations after the 1909 season. The Purple Eagles returned for the 1914 season and kept playing college football until World War II made the 1941 season Niagara's last until 1946. For the third time, the Purple Eagles suspended their team after the 1950 season, only to return in 1967. After 20 seasons of play that had seven winless seasons with six occurring in a span of seven years, the Purple Eagles dropped football for the fourth and final time after the 1987 season. Over the span of 67 seasons, the team went won 182 games, lost 205 games, and had 31 ties. In the 1975 club season they played the Heritage Bowl in Worcester, Massachusetts, losing to Assumption College (27-7). The Eagles had 37 seasons in which they finished with more wins and ties than losses, though the Purple Eagles finished on an 18-game losing streak in over three seasons, their last win occurring in October 1985.
The most wins they had in a season was 1902, in which they went 9–3–1, while the most losses they had in a season was 1922, when they finished 1–8–1.
Notable players
- Tom Cahill
- Dan DeSantis
- Bob Stefik
Women's ice hockey
Main article: Niagara Purple Eagles women's ice hockey
Rivalries
Niagara's fiercest rivals include:
- St. Bonaventure Bonnies
- Canisius Golden Griffins
All-Americans
- Calvin Murphy, 1970 (men's basketball)
- Tania Pinelli, 2002 (women's hockey)
- Juan Mendez, 2005 (men's basketball)
- Allison Rutledge, 2007 (women's hockey)
- Paul Zanette, 2011 (men's hockey)
NCAA postseason appearances
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament championships
- Women's Volleyball: 2011, 2010, 2009
- Men's basketball: 2007, 2005
- Women's Soccer: 2006
- Women's Tennis: 2005, 2003
- Women's Lacrosse: 2024
- Baseball: 2024
- Softball: 1998
- Men's Swimming & Diving: 1994, 2025
- Women's Swimming & Diving: 2022, 2024, 2025
- Men's soccer: 2012
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference regular-season titles
- Women's Volleyball: 2011, 2010
- Women's Tennis: 2009, 2003
- Men's Basketball: 2013, 2005, 2001, 1999
- Baseball: 2024
College Hockey America Tournament championships
College Hockey America regular-season titles
- Men's Hockey: 2007, 2006, 2000
Atlantic Hockey Association regular-season titles
- Men's Hockey: 2013
References
References
This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.
Ask Mako anything about Niagara Purple Eagles — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.
Research with MakoFree with your Surf account
Create a free account to save articles, ask Mako questions, and organize your research.
Sign up freeThis content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.
Report