Box Score Box Score

North Andover, Mass. - The Adelphi University women's basketball team earned a 70-63 road win over Merrimack College in Northeast-10 Conference action at Hammel Court on Tuesday. The Panthers rode standout performances from sophomore Jessica Kitrys, who poured in a career-high 22 points, and freshman Kelly Mannix, who grabbed a season-best 11 rebounds. Adelphi improves to 5-7 overall and 3-5 in NE-10 play, just two wins shy of matching last season's conference win total. The Warriors slip to 2-9 and 1-7 in league competition.

Kitrys' 22 points came on 9-of-21 shooting and beats her previous best of 19 points against Assumption earlier this season. The sophomore forward was outrebounded only by Mannix, who pulled down double-digit rebounds for the second straight game while chipping in eight points. Senior Amanda Campusano had a hot hand for the hoop as well, dropping 17 points on 4-of-7 shooting from behind the arc while playing 39 minutes.

For Merrimack, Chloe Rothman tied Kitrys for the game-high scoring total with 22, and Gennifer Roy added 17 points. The hosts narrowly outshot the Panthers (38.1 percent to 34.3 percent), but a 54-to-41 rebounding margin in favor of Adelphi gave the visitors 22 second-chance points and ultimately made the difference in the game.

The Panthers dashed out of the gate to a 14-2 lead in the first five minutes of play on a combined 11 points from Kitrys and Campusano. Merrimack clawed back within five midway through the half and stayed within striking distance thanks to a 10-point first half performance from Roy, but both offenses went cold as the half wound down, with the two squads combining for a single field goal in the final four minutes. 

Adelphi extended a 35-27 halftime lead to 11 points on a Mannix 3-pointer and two good free throws from Kitrys, but Rothman caught fire at the 12:25 mark in the second half with three straight buckets to swing the momentum in the hosts' favor. With five minutes to play, a Katie Ganser 3-pointer sliced the Adelphi cushion to 60-57, but Mannix and Shannon Flynn drilled matching treys as time wound down to put the game out of reach.

The Panthers return to action on Saturday when they host Saint Michael's College for an NE-10 contest at 1:30 p.m.