Connector adapter and circuit board assembly including the same

A daughter card assembly configured to engage a backplane or midplane circuit board of a communication system, the daughter card assembly comprising:

• a right-angle electrical connector having a mounting side and a connector array of signal and ground tails positioned along the mounting side, the electrical connector having a mating side that is configured to mate with an electrical connector of the communication system, the mating and mounting sides facing in perpendicular directions;
• a circuit board having electrical contacts;
• and
• a connector adapter stacked between and communicatively coupling the electrical connector and the circuit board, the connector adapter increasing an elevation of the mating side of the electrical connector relative to the circuit board, the connector adapter including an adapter body having a mating side that interfaces with the mounting side of the electrical connector, the mating side including signal and ground cavities that open to the mating side, the connector adapter including a conductor assembly having signal and ground conductors that extend through the adapter body, the signal conductors forming a plurality of signal pairs, the ground conductors being positioned to electrically separate the signal pairs, the signal and ground conductors having signal and ground terminals, respectively, that are positioned within the signal and ground cavities, respectively, proximate to the mating side, wherein the signal and ground terminals engage the signal and ground tails, respectively, of the connector array and wherein the electrical connector, the connector adapter, and the circuit board are coupled to one another such that the daughter card assembly may be moved as a unit for mating with the communication system.