Elmira, NY – The two halves of Saturday afternoon's game couldn't have been more different for the Clarkson University Women's Basketball team, as the Golden Knights trailed by 16 points at the half, but turned that deficit into a nine-point advantage in the second half. Unfortunately, the Knights couldn't maintain their torrid pace and came up short in a 59-53 non-league loss to Elmira College.

The Golden Knights fell to 4-3 overall and will close out the first semester next Saturday when they face SUNY Canton. Elmira improved to 4-2 on the season.

The Soaring Eagles scored on their second possession of the game and never looked back for the remainder of the half as Clarkson's offense was sluggish with 13 turnovers and just 20 percent shooting (6-for-30) in the first half. The Knights attempted to spark their offense with shots from the perimeter, but the attempts simply would not find their mark as Clarkson was 0-for-12 from beyond the 3-point arc. Elmira wasn't much better in the opening minutes of the game, but midway through the half the Soaring Eagles solved their woes and ended the period on an 11-2 run, capped by a last second 3-pointer from Jessica Zoltowski, who had 13 first-half points. For Clarkson, Brooke Butkovsky (Monroe, CT) was 3-for-4 from the floor with six points and Isabella Esposito (Essex, VT) grabbed six rebounds.

The second half was a different story entirely, as Clarkson made 11 of its first 21 attempts from the field in the first 10 minutes, while Elmira made just three of its 14 attempts and Clarkson turned a 16-point deficit into a nine-point lead. More to the point, Clarkson trailed by 10 (35-25) early in the half, but in the course of seven minutes went on a 22-3 run to take a 47-38 lead. The biggest key was the Knights' taking care of the basketball, turning the ball over only three times in the first 16 minutes of the half while forcing 10 turnovers by Elmira in that same time frame. However, the Knights couldn't maintain that shooting streak forever and the Soaring Eagles slowly climbed back into the game, tying the contest up at 49-49 with 3:02 remaining. The two teams traded baskets in the next minute and the score remained knotted up before a lay in by Jessica Zoltowski helped Elmira regain the advantage at the 1:45 mark. A missed three-pointer from Cara Manfredi (Glastonbury, CT) gave the Soaring Eagles another opportunity to add to its modest lead, and Elmira took advantage with a 3-pointer from Maria Thannhauser, extending the lead to five (56-51). From that point on Elmira was able to convert its free throw attempts down the stretch while the Knights were unable to make their desperation shots to climb back into the contest.

Three Clarkson players finished in double figures, with Manfredi and Ashley Loggins (Albany, NY) each turning in 13-point efforts. Brooke Butkovsky chipped in 10 points on 5-for-6 shooting before fouling out of the contest and Isabella Esposito grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out four assists. For Elmira, Jessica Zoltowski finished with 25 points and eight rebounds, going 9-for-17 from the floor. Maria Thannhauser also tossed in 13 points with eight rebounds.