NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. – A fourth-quarter surge helped propel the Monmouth women's basketball team to a 64-55 road victory over Iona in the MAAC opener on Saturday afternoon.
 
Trailing by three entering the final frame, the Hawks (5-4, 1-0 MAAC) outscored the Gaels, 20-8, in the closing 10 minutes of action to secure the road win. Stella Clark led the late offensive barrage with 12 of her team-best 27 points coming in the fourth quarter. Monmouth got it done on the defensive end as well, limiting the Gaels (2-4, 0-1 MAAC) to just one made field goal in the final six minutes of play.
 
Clark had her most efficient day in a Monmouth jersey, making eight shots on 12 tries while shooting 4-of-5 from deep en route to posting her season-best scoring total. The Sea Girt, N.J., native added four rebounds, four assists and a season-high five steals to her stat line.
 
Jen Louro logged 15 in the scoring column for the second consecutive outing after shooting 6-of-11 from the field and knocking down three treys to go along with five boards and a pair of steals. Ariana Vanderhoop added nine points on the afternoon with four helpers, while Jania Hall recorded a team-best five assists with five rebounds and five points.

NOTES AND QUOTES
"Going on the road in the MAAC was everything I knew it would be. We had to find another level of intensity and toughness in the second half and that was the difference."
-Head Coach Ginny Boggess
 
-Clark notched double-digit points for the third straight outing.
-She is the first Monmouth player to score 20 or more points in a game since Belle Kranbuhl dropped 20 on Feb. 14, 2021.
-Clark's 27 points were the most by a Hawk in a game since Sierra Green' 19 recorded 28 on Feb. 12, 2019 against Manhattan.
-Louro has reached double figures in the scoring column in four of her last five outings.
-The Hawks connected on 50 percent of their shots from the field for the first time since Feb. 14, 2021.
-Monmouth opened MAAC play with a win for the first time since the 2019-20 campaign.
-It was the Hawks' first conference road win since topping Saint Peter's, 70-60, on Feb. 14, 2021.
 
NUMBERS CRUNCH
-Monmouth shot a season-best 50 percent from the field and 42 percent from deep.
-The Hawks bested Iona in New Rochelle, N.Y. for the fourth straight meeting.
-Monmouth dished out 14 assists on 24 made shots.
-The Monmouth starters accounted for 94 percent of the team's points.
-The Hawks' 11 steals tied a season-best mark.
-Monmouth shot 54 percent from the field in the second half.

UP NEXT
Monmouth will close out the non-conference slate in New York on Monday when the Hawks take on St. Francis Brooklyn for a 7 p.m. contest.