MONTCLAIR, N.J. – The Delaware Valley women's basketball team clawed its way back from 20-plus point deficit with an impressive fourth quarter surge, but couldn't overcome the gap completely, dropping the contest at Montclair State 80-71.
 
With her 17^th point in the game, senior Alexis Wright hit the 1000 career points milestone. She ended the contest with a total of 21 points and seven rebounds.
 
After trailing early, the Aggies found their rhythm midway through the opening quarter. A turnaround jumper from Julianna Harris followed by a three-pointer from Alexis Lease-Springer handed DelVal a one-point lead five minutes in. Ciana Feliciano added a triple moments later to extend the advantage to four. Montclair broke a three-minute scoring drought, but a quick four-point burst from Alexis Wright kept DelVal in front, 14–8. The Red Hawks, however, closed the frame on a perfect trip to the free-throw line in the final seconds to reclaim a one-point edge heading into the second.
 
The second quarter proved to be the turning point. DelVal struggled to find offensive momentum, shooting just 22.2% from the field for seven points. Montclair State capitalized, posting 24 points on 47.4% shooting to build a 43–25 halftime lead.
 
The Aggies responded with renewed defensive intensity out of the locker room. DelVal narrowly outshot Montclair State in the third quarter (28.6% to 26.7%), but the biggest difference came beyond the arc. The Aggies locked down the perimeter, holding the Red Hawks to 0-for-6 from deep. On the other end, Whitney Evans ignited DelVal with a personal 10–0 run—including a pair of three-pointers in the final four minutes—to cut into the deficit.
 
Montclair State regained momentum to start the fourth, knocking down two early threes as part of a 12–2 run to take its largest lead of the night at 24 points. The Aggies continued to battle, sparked by Wright, who capitalized on Red Hawk foul trouble with two perfect trips to the free-throw line on her way to a solo 9–4 stretch. DelVal outscored Montclair 23–13 in the remainder of the quarter, fueled by 90% shooting at the line and two more threes from Evans, but the rally came up just short as the Red Hawks held on.
 
Evans led all Aggies with 22 points, hitting 4-of-8 from long range. Wright and Lease-Springer anchored the glass with seven rebounds each, while Feliciano, Harris, and Wright collected two steals apiece. Harris and Wright also added two blocks to round out DelVal's defensive effort.
 
DelVal is back in action this Friday, Nov. 21 at the Terry Greene Tipoff Tournament hosted by Franklin and Marshall. The Aggies will take on Ursinus at the tournament in Lancaster at 5:30 p.m.