Garden City, N.Y. - A first-half deficit proved largely too much for the Adelphi University women's basketball team to overcome inside the Center for Recreation and Sports on Saturday afternoon, as the Panthers fell to the Purple Knights of Saint Michael's College, 62-59.

Adelphi (9-9, 5-5 NE10) trailed by 12 points at the half thanks to a quick start by the visiting team, in which the Purple Knights shot nearly 50 percent from the floor over the first 20 minutes. On the other end, the Brown and Gold were plagued by turnovers, as 12 in the first half led to a total of 16 points for the visitors.

In addition, Saint Michael's held Adelphi scoreless for over seven minutes as the first quarter bled into the second, leading to its 15-12 lead at the close of the first to balloon to 26-12 at the midway point of the second.

However, a 21-12 third quarter helped Adelphi claw back into contention, thanks in part to the efforts of Niajah Morgan, who scored eight of her team-high 16 points in the period. A Katie Murphy three-pointer from the left wing helped pull the Brown and Gold to within one at the 1:49 mark of the third, but the Panthers were unable to tie or wrestle back the lead for the rest of the contest.

Fallyn Stephens knocked down a three-pointer in the waning seconds of the third to make it a one-possession game, and the two teams battled for the early part of the fourth, trading buckets as Adelphi stayed in touch. However, both teams went cold from the floor for nearly three minutes at the midway point of the fourth until Murphy went to the line and sank one of two free throws to finally draw Adelphi even at 54-54 with 3:49 remaining.

The Brown and Gold were unable to take the lead, however, and six points from Delaney down the stretch helped allow Saint Michael's to hold on to the victory.

Aside from Morgan's 16 points, four Adelphi starters scored in double figures in the setback, as Stephens tallied 15 while Emily Miccile and Simone Hobdy added 12 and 10, respectively. For the Purple Knights (6-10, 3-8 NE10), Samantha Delaney was a force in the paint, as she totaled a game-high 24 points on 12-of-16 shooting from the floor, while point guard Brianna Purcell helped facilitate the offense with 10 assists.

The Panthers are back in action on Wednesday night, when they hit the road for a 5:30 p.m. conference contest at league-leading Bentley University.

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About Adelphi Athletics
Adelphi University joined the Northeast-10 Conference in the fall of 2009, and in the past eight seasons, has collected 25 regular season conference titles, 26 tournament championships, 33 individual crowns and captured the Northeast-10 Presidents' Cup four times (2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017), while winning six NCAA Division II National Championships.

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