BROOKLYN HEIGHTS, N.Y. - Alysha Womack (Springfield, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara)
scored a season-high 22 points as the Monmouth University women's basketball
team won its sixth straight with a 53-44 victory over St. Francis (N.Y.),
Monday afternoon at the Pope Physical Education Center. With the win, the Hawks
move to 9-8 (4-2 NEC), while the Terriers fall to 1-16 (0-6 NEC).
Alexis Canady
(Forestville, Md./Bishop McNamara) added 12 points and four assists for the
Hawks, while Carly Thibault (East Lyme, Conn./East Lyme) scored an efficient eight
points on 3-for-4 shooting. The Hawks forced 24 St. Francis turnovers on the
game and took a 28-7 advantage on points off turnovers. Abby Martin (Maplewood,
N.J./Columbia) finished with a career-high five steals.
Jaymee Veney led
St. Francis with 10 points, while Eilidh Simson (9), Jessica Kaufman (8) and
Kim Snauwaert (7) were close behind. Jasmin Robinson added a game-high seven
rebounds.
The Hawks held
the Terriers without a field goal for almost nine minutes to open the game and
created a 12-2 advantage. Monmouth never trailed. After the Terriers closed to
within 14-11, Monmouth scored the next nine points to reestablish a
double-digit advantage at 23-11. St. Francis whittled the advantage down to
five points, 25-20, with nine of the next 11 points, before Monmouth closed the
half on a 6-0 run to take a 31-20 edge into the locker room.
Led by Womack's
15 first-half points on 6-of-10 shooting, the Hawks shot 52.0 percent (13-25) in
the initial stanza. Canady also added seven points and three assists in the
first half. The Hawks forced 14 first-half turnovers by the Terriers. Veney and
Kaufman had six points each for St. Francis.
The Hawks
outscored the Terriers, 9-2, to open the second half and established a 20-point
lead, 42-22, on Womack's three-pointer at the 10:31 mark. Monmouth held the
Terriers without a field goal for almost 11 minutes to open the second half.
Gradually, St. Francis whittled away at the Hawks' lead until it reached nine
points with 25 seconds remaining.
For the game, the
Hawks outshot the Terriers, 41.7 percent (20-48) to 35.9 percent (14-39) from
the field. Monmouth forced 24 turnovers while turning the ball over 15 times.
The Terriers finished the game with a 42.9 percent (6-14) to 36.4 percent
(4-11) edge from long range and a 100 percent (10-10) to 56.3 percent (9-16)
advantage from the free-throw line. St. Francis also took a 30-28 edge on the
glass. Led by Womack (22) and Thibault (8), Monmouth's bench scored a
season-high 30 points.
The Hawks return
to NEC action Saturday, when they play host to Robert Morris. Opening tip from the
MAC is scheduled for 3 p.m.
