Box Score
Lowell, Mass. - The Adelphi University women's basketball team dropped an 87-73 decision to a red-hot UMass Lowell squad in Northeast-10 Conference action at the Costello Athletic Center on Tuesday. The Riverhawks, who are averaging 83.6 points per game over a five-game winning streak, improve to 10-4 overall and 7-3 in league play, while the Panthers slip to 9-5 overall and 6-4 in the NE-10.
Sophomore
Samantha Milhaven posted a career-high 17 points on 6-8 shooting and a 4-6 mark from behind the 3-point line.
Sade Jackson also dropped 17 points for Adelphi, but Jackson and Milhaven combined could not match UML's Bianca Simmons, who poured in 35 points for the victors. The nation's leading scorer, Simmons registered a double-double with 12 rebounds and shot at a 15-24 clip on the evening.
Kelly Mannix added 15 points for the Panthers and had five steals, but go-to forward
Jessica Kitrys was held to a season-low four points. Kitrys, Adelphi's leading scorer on the year, had posted at least 11 points in every game so far this season before the Riverhawk defense clamped down on the Panthers' in-the-paint attack.
Adelphi built an early lead, jumping ahead by eight points at the 15:55 mark on one of Milhaven's six 3-pointers. UML clawed back to a tie minutes later and began to pull away midway through the half. An 8-0 run put the Riverhawks in front 31-24 with nine minutes to go in the first and earned their first double digit lead on a 3-pointer by Lauren Fiola. The Panthers chipped away and came back within five points as a
Kelly Mannix layup with 48 second to go made it a 43-38 advantage for UML.
The Riverhawks held a single-digit lead for the first few minutes after intermission but ran the advantage to 10 points at the 13:21 mark. Back-to-back shots from downtown by Milhaven and
Tara Flynn got the Panthers back within eight, and a 7-1 run capped by a Jackson layup cut the deficit to four points with 7:40 to play.
Ifeanyi Ofili then converted a bucket, drew the foul and sank the free throw to pull within three, but a flurry of UML baskets resulted in an 8-0 run to put the hosts ahead by 12 with 3:05 left. The Riverhawks then sank 8-13 free throws in the final two minutes to hold on for the 87-73 win.
The Panthers return home on Saturday to host Franklin Pierce University in an NE-10 contest at 1:30 p.m.
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