Adelphi University Athletics

Brookville, N.Y. -- An 18-point swing in the third quarter helped push the NYIT Bears past the Adelphi University women's basketball team in its season opener on Friday night, 73-59, on the campus of LIU Post.

The Panthers (0-1) got double-figures from four on the night, led by a team-high 17 from Sierra Clark, who also posted a double-double with 12 rebounds. Simone Hobdy, Niajah Morgan and Calli Balfour all posted 12 points, with Hobdy falling one rebound short of a double-double in her Adelphi debut and Morgan totaling career highs in points and four steals. The Bears (1-0) got 17 points each from Shannon Duer and Shanice Arthur.

A back-and-forth first quarter saw three ties and three lead changes, as neither side was able to build a lead of more than three points. A Natalie Fekula layup tied the score at 15-15 with 58 second to play, but Arthur sunk a pair from the free throw line with just 15 seconds on the clock to give the Bears a 17-15 edge after the first 10 minutes.

Adelphi's offense started to click to begin the second quarter, and a 10-2 run thanks to Clark and Morgan over the first 3:50 put the Brown and Gold ahead 25-19. That margin expanded to a game-high nine at 29-20 when Morgan put in another two on a fast break with 3:59 on the clock, but the Bears rolled off 11 of the final 15 points of the period to make it a one possession game at the break, 33-31.

The NYIT momentum continued well into the second half, as the Bears made six of their first eight shots of the third quarter to run off 16 consecutive points and build a 47-33 lead. Adelphi could do little to stem the tide, and NYIT's lead grew to a game-high 20 at 55-35 as the scoring run reached 24-2.

However, the Panthers settled to score six of the final eight points of the quarter over the final two minutes, and pushed out to a 10-4 run over the first five minutes in the fourth to cut the lead to 10, as Balfour knocked down a pair of threes in that span. While Adelphi continued to press on offense in the final five minutes, the Panthers were unable to close the gap to less than nine, as all the scoring in the game for both sides came at the charity stripe after Hobdy sunk a layup with 2:37 to go.

The Panthers are back in action tomorrow on day two of the ECC/NE-10 Challenge for a 5 pm contest against the host Pioneers of LIU Post.

NOTES
- With 12 points in tonight's season opener, Calli Balfour sits just 28 points shy of 1,000 for her Adelphi career.
- The Panthers were selected second in the Southwest Division in the NE-10 Preseason Coaches' Poll.

---

About Adelphi Athletics:
Adelphi University joined the Northeast-10 Conference in the fall of 2009 and in the past seven seasons, has collected 20 regular season conference titles, 24 tournament championships, 29 individual crowns and captured the Northeast-10 Presidents' Cup three times (2013, 2014, and 2016), while winning five NCAA Division II National Championships.

For the latest on Adelphi University Athletics, follow the Panthers at www.aupanthers.com or via social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and Snapchat.