George Washington Colonials (5-7) – 59
Monmouth Hawks (2-9) – 45
 
WEST LONG BRANCH, NJ – Using a 27-3 run from the first quarter to the third quarter, George Washington defeated the Monmouth University women's basketball team on Friday afternoon, 59-45. The Hawks' comeback fell short in the fourth quarter, as they cut the deficit to nine after being down by as many as 20 late in the third quarter. Sophomore guard Rosa Graham scored a season-high 12 points in the loss, while junior center Erica Balman matched a career-high of 10 rebounds. Monmouth dropped to 2-9 on the season, and will travel to Marist for the first MAAC game of the season on December 30.
 
NOTES AND QUOTES
"Defensively, we showed some fight in a manner that held them under 60 points. That's one of our goals for every team we play. From an offensive standpoint, the first and fourth quarters showed glimpses of being great, but we have to learn how to keep doing that when we're tired. We're still a little bit of a young team, and we have to start making our easy shots. We need those to start to go down, and we have to get under control when things start to fall apart."  - Monmouth head coach Jody Craig
-The Hawks took a 6-3 early lead into the first quarter media timeout, including a Shaw triple.
-In a low scoring first frame, Monmouth maintained a 10-7 lead after one. The Hawks held GW to just 3-13 (23%) from the floor.  
-After ending the first on a 4-0 run, the Colonials rattled off a 5-0 run to open the second quarter and took a 12-10 lead. They would build that run to 20-0, and eventually took a 25-13 lead late into halftime.
-The Colonials kept the foot on the gas, outscoring the Hawks 19-13 in the third quarter to take a 44-26 advantage into the final frame.
-The Hawks used a 10-2 run to open the fourth quarter to make it a 10-point deficit, trailing just 46-36 with 7:08 left. Despite outscoring the Colonials 19-15 in the fourth quarter, the Hawks eventually fell 59-45.

NUMBERS CRUNCH
 -Monmouth kept its opponent to seven or less points in a single quarter for the third time this season. However, the Hawks scored seven or less points in a quarter for the sixth time this year.
-The Hawks did not score in the second quarter until there was 1:10 left, ending George Washington's 20-0 run. The Colonials outscored Monmouth 18-3 in the frame.
-Sophomore Alexa Middleton added nine points in the contest.
-Monmouth shot 17-50 (34%) in the contest.
-Senior Rhaiah Spooner-Knight grabbed a season-high eight rebounds.
-The Hawks have committed more turnovers than their opponent in all 11 games this season.

UP NEXT
The Hawks will begin conference play at Marist on December 30. Last season, the Hawks split with the Red Foxes, including a 79-69 win in West Long Branch and a 76-66 loss on the road.