TINSLEY GOES CRAZY
Monmouth's
Bri Tinsley had a career afternoon at Sacred Heart, netting 25 points, a career-high in leading MU to a win. Her seven field goals and free throws made are both career bests for the fifth-year senior.
THOMAS' BIG START
Monmouth's
Lucy Thomas posted a career night against NJCU, finishing with a career-high 23 points and matching a career-best with 13 rebounds. She followed that with 19 off the bench in the victory at Sacred Heart.
COLEMAN MAKING AN IMPACT
Freshman
Anaya Coleman made her first career start against NJCU and was impactful, scoring 15 points on an efficient 6-9 shooting to go with four assists and five rebounds. She then added five assists in another start, topping Sacred Heart.
WHAT'S RETURNING
Monmouth returns seven of its top eight scorers from a season ago and eight overall letterwinners, including top returning scorer
Kaci Donovan. Monmouth brings back 71.6% of its total points from a season ago (1,271 of 1,776) and 119 total starts.
WHAT WAS LOST
Monmouth has six players that will not return from a season ago, most notably leading scorer Stella Clark, who averaged 12 points per game and was tops on the team in assists (123), steals (47) and second in rebounding. Overall, MU will be without 28.4% of its scoring from a year ago (505 of 1,776 points).
TRANSFERRING IN
Head Coach
Ginny Boggess has bolstered the roster with the addition of two impact transfers, both of whom will complete their final season of eligibility this year. Point guard
Bri Tinsley joins the Hawks after stops at Virginia and James Madison, where she has picked up 114 games and 78 starts worth of collegiate experience. Joining her is local product
Lovin Marsicano, a Manasquan native who played four seasons at Saint Joseph's, where she appeared in 82 games and made 21 starts. Marsicano led Monmouth in minutes played (29) and assists at St. John's, while Tinsley started at point guard and had seven points and two assists in 28 minutes.
FRESHMAN CLASS
Three freshmen make up this season's class, with guards
Anaya Coleman and Amiya Carroll and forward
Ella Farrelly. All three made their collegiate debuts against St. John's with each scoring their first career points. Coleman made her first-career start against NJCU and poured in 15 points.
NEW STAFF ADDITIONS
Head Coach
Ginny Boggess has added three new coaching staff members to her bench this season, with
Camden Boehner,
Torrie Cash and
Matt Gross coming aboard in West Long Branch. Boehner comes on as an assistant coach after spending last season at IUP following a playing career at West Chester where she was an All-PSAC selection.
Torrie Cash joins the staff as the Director of Program Operations after two seasons on the bench at Coastal Carolina, where she was a two-year contributor with the Chanticleers. Rounding out the coaching staff additions for Boggess is Director of Basketball Operations
Matt Gross, a May graduate of Penn State where he was a student manager with the Nittany Lions.
RECORD BOOK WATCH
The Hawks have a few players poised to make moves up the career record books this season, led by center
Belle Kranbuhl. She currently ranks seventh all-time in blocks, recently tying Cindy Hook for seventh and four away from Alexa Middleton in sixth.
Jen Louro is 16th in career threes, two shy of Liz Whalen in 15th, and 14th in 3PT attempts, 56 away from Gabby Singer up next.
REACHING 60 POINTS
The Monmouth women's basketball team scored at least 60 points on 17 occasions last season. When reaching the 60-point mark, the Hawks were 10-7. The last time a Monmouth team recorded double-digit games with 60 or more points scored was during the 2018-19 campaign. That year, the Hawks reached 60 points in 14 of their 31 games and finished with a 10-4 record in those contests. The last Monmouth team to record over 60 points in 16 games was the 2016-17 squad that did on 22 occasions.
IN EXCLUSIVE COMPANY
It took just 16 games for Monmouth head women's basketball coach
Ginny Boggess to reach double-digit wins in her first season. She became the second-fastest head coach to accomplish that feat in his or her inaugural season at the helm of the program. Mickey McGlade (15 games – 1984-85) is the only coach that ranks ahead of Boggess, accomplishing the feat in her first 15 games.
SHORE CONFERENCE TIES
Monmouth's roster is made up of five players who called the nearby Shore Conference home prior to college. Grad students
Lucy Thomas,
Jen Louro and
Lovin Marsicano all played at St. Rose, while
Kayla Richardson competed at Middletown South and
Antonia Panayides at Red Bank Catholic.
POINT GUARD
Ginny Boggess has had a veteran transfer lead the way in each of her first two seasons, beginning last year with Northeastern transfer Stella Clark leading the Hawks in scoring and earning a spot on the All-MAAC Second Team. This year, she will turn to Virginia and James Madison transfer
Bri Tinsley, who has a whopping 114 collegiate games under her belt coming into the year. A Preseason All-CAA selection last year while at JMU, Tinsley has three career 19-point games, and is an 81.9% free throw shooter while in college.
DONOVAN TO FACTOR
Leading returning scorer
Kaci Donovan is back after scoring 8.3 points per game and grabbing 2.4 rebounds in her first season in West Long Branch. The Penn State transfer made 46 threes and netted 79 field goals in averaging 20 minutes per night. Donovan is the only Hawk to score in double figures in both games this season with 11 points at St. John's and 10 in the win over NJCU.
MOVING TO THE CAA
Last January, Monmouth University announced a department-wide move to the Colonial Athletic Association. Monmouth Women's Basketball is set to play in its first season in the CAA, with MU's fall sports already finding success in its new home with CAA regular season titles won by women's soccer and field hockey.
VANDERHOOP'S STRONG END
Junior
Ariana Vanderhoop closed her sophomore campaign strong, scoring in double-digits in half of Monmouth's games played after the New Year. She hit her career best of 12 points during that stretch twice, both against Iona and Niagara, in addition to a 3-3 night from three against Manhattan.
NON-CONFERENCE SLATE
Coach Boggess has challenged her team this season, bookended with a Big East foe in St. John's and a 26-win, NCAA Tournament qualifying BYU squad in December. The Hawks will also play several competitive mid-majors and seven road games in the non-league.
SCOUTING THE GREYHOUNDS
Loyola is off to a 1-2 start this season, with losses to Niagara and Morgan State before topping UMBC the last time out. They are led by Lex Therien, who averages a double double of 17.7 points and 14.7 rebounds. Taleah Dixon also scores in double-figures for Loyola, who was picked ninth in the Patriot League.
UP NEXT
Monmouth continues its four-game road trip on November 22 when they visit Navy at 7:00 p.m. in Annapolis, MD.