Worcester, Mass. (January 25) -- No. 21 Assumption cut a 10-point lead down to two points with 1:29 remaining but couldn't get any closer as Saint Michael's came away with the 62-56 win on Wednesday night at Laska Gym. Assumption is ranked No. 21 in this week's USA Today/ESPN Division II National Poll, up three spots from last week. The Hounds have been ranked in all seven regular-season national polls this season.

In the opening half, led from the outset and held an eight-point lead with 7:01 left in the period after a layup from senior All-American candidate Kelly Meredith (Franklin, Mass./Franklin). The Purple Knights got to the line 16 times in the first half though, outscoring the Hounds by a 13-4 margin at the charity stripe in the period to head into the half at 31-28 in favor of Assumption.

A quick 4-0 run to open the second half gave Saint Michael's its first lead of the game at 32-31 before the Hounds quickly regained a two-point edge on a three-point play by Meredith. The two teams traded the lead over the next eight minutes before the Purple Knights surged ahead 44-39 midway thru the period on a layup from Nicole Adach. Assumption cut the lead to 46-44 before a 12-4 run gave Saint Michael's its biggest lead of the game at 58-48 with 2:35 remaining.

Assumption put together a quick 8-0 behind eight straight points from junior Gabrielle Gibson (Amityville, N.Y./Copiague) to make it a 58-56 game with 1:29 still remaining in the game. Gibson used a pair of three-pointers in the run, sandwiched between two free throws after being fouled after a steal of an inbounds pass. Saint Michael's hit four free throws down the stretch though and held on for the six-point victory.

Saint Michael's got to the line 33 times in the game, outscoring the hosts by a 25-13 margin from the charity stripe.

Meredith led the Hounds with 19 points in the game and now has 1,453 career points. Gibson also finished in double figures with 11 points off the bench. Adach led Saint Michael's with 17 points, along with a 15-point effort from Coreen Hennessy.

With the loss, the Hounds fall to 13-5 overall and 10-4 in Northeast-10 play, while Saint Michael's is now 8-10 overall and 5-9 in the league.

Assumption is back in action on Saturday, January 28th as the Hounds travel to Merrimack for a 1 p.m. start in North Andover, Mass.