The Misericordia University women's basketball team couldn't rally out of an early hole as the Cougars fell 58-46 to FDU-Florham, Saturday in Madison, NJ.

Junior Christine Marks was 7-of-12 from the field for a game-high 20 points, while classmate Jesse Robinson was also in double-figures with 12 points. Hannah Seely had nine points and three steals.

Down 49-33 with under six minutes remaining, MU went on a quick 12-2 run but couldn't complete the comeback.

A pair of Robinson free throws cut the lead to 51-40 with 4:07 to play. For the third time in the game, Seely stripped a Devil and went in for a lay-up, slicing the FDU-Florham lead to 51-42.

The next time down the floor, Robinson's three-pointer that would have cut the lead to six with three minutes to play went in-and-out. Still the Cougars kept pushing, and Tyann McDaniel's baseline jumper with 1:40 remaining made it 51-45. McDaniel then stole the inbounds pass but MU couldn't convert and the Devils held off the Misericordia charge.

Turnovers hurt both sides, with Misericordia committing 25 giveaways to FDU's 26.

For a fleeting moment it looked like MU would have a bright start to the game as McDaniel drained a three-pointer on the first possession, immediately forcing FDU to use a timeout. The Devils answered with threes on their first two shots however, taking a 6-3 lead.

With 12:27 left in the opening period, FDU hit a three to stretch the gap to 19-7. Seely answered with a put-back but the Devils sunk two more longballs to open up an early 25-9 lead.

Some determined defense from Seely midway through the first half helped the Cougars finally establish themselves. Down 27-11, the sophomore took a charge and Marks finished a nice lefty hook move at the other end.

On the next possession, Seely picked her opponent's pocket and drove down for the lay-in. Then the Cougars forced a five-second violation, leading to a Marks free throw and cutting to gap to 11.

The Devils couldn't miss from behind the arc though, and yet another three eventually restored the 17-point advantage as the hosts went into the break with a 36-19 lead.

FDU shot a blistering 60% from downtown in the first half, while the Cougars committed 15 turnovers.

Misericordia falls to 10-7, 5-2 with the loss and hits the halfway point of the Freedom Conference season in a tie for second place with DeSales. MU hosts Delaware Valley on Saturday.