FINAL SCORE
Monmouth 73 (18-8, 11-4 CAA)
College of Charleston 63 (18-7, 10-4 CAA)

WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. – Ariana Vanderhoop scored a career-high 26 points to lead the Monmouth University women's basketball team to a key 73-63 win over College of Charleston in Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) play Sunday afternoon.
 
The Hawks flew out of the gate and quickly opened a 13-4 lead with 6:23 left in the first period. Vanderhoop had four points in that stretch for the Hawks. Monmouth hit five three-pointers in the first period and took a 27-17 lead after one.
 
A fast break bucket from Rosalie Mercille at 7:27 of the second period gave the home team a 32-17 lead. It was Monmouth's largest advantage of the game. The two teams traded baskets over the final seven minutes of the frame as Monmouth grabbed a 41-31 lead at the break.
 
A Vanderhoop lay-up at 6:48 of the third gave Monmouth a 43-35 advantage. College of Charleston scored nine of the next 13 points in the game and cut the Monmouth lead to three, 47-44 with 4:13 showing on the clock. Monmouth responded with an 8-3 run and pushed its lead back to nine, 55-46 with 2:04 to go. Jania Hall and Kaci Donovan had three-pointers in that stretch. Monmouth took a 57-49 lead after three periods of play. 
 
The Cougars scored the first six points of the fourth quarter and cut the Monmouth lead to two, 57-55 with 8:24 to go in the game. College of Charleston continued to battle and made it a three-point game, 60-57 with 5:23 showing on the clock. The Hawks scored six of the next eight points in the game made it a 66-59 with 1:35 left. Monmouth made 7-of-8 from the foul line in the final 34 seconds to secure the 73-63 win.

NOTES & QUOTES
"I am so proud of the adjustments we made from Friday's game, particularly taking better care of the basketball. Our defensive effort was incredible, and it allowed us to get out and play in transition. This was a fun one going into the bye week."
    - Head coach Ginny Boggess

- The Hawks completed the season sweep of the Cougars with the victory. Monmouth has won three straight games over College of Charleston and leads the all-time series, 3-1.
- With the win, the Hawks have matched last year's win total (18) with three games remaining in the regular season. It is the 11th time in program history that the Hawks have won at least 18 games.
- Head coach Ginny Boggess picked up her 50th win in her 90th game on the Hawks' bench. She is the seventh coach in program history to win at least 50 games.  
- The Hawks moved into third place in the CAA standings with three games remaining in the regular season.
- Ariana Vanderhoop led the Hawks with a career-high 26 points in the game. It was the second straight game with 20+ points and fourth 20+ point performance of her career. It was also the 13th double digit game of the season for Vanderhooop. 
- Kaci Donovan finished with 13 points for the Hawks. It was her 17th game this season scoring in double figures. 
- Belle Kranbuhl led the Hawks with 14 rebounds in the contest. It was Kranbuhl's second double-digit rebounding performance of the year against the Cougars and her sixth double figure rebounding game of the year.  

NUMBERS CRUNCH
- Monmouth shot 49% from the field in the win. The Hawks shot a blistering 73.3% (11-for-15) from the field in the first 10 minutes and finished the first half with a 64.0 field goal percentage. 
- The Hawks held College of Charleston to a 35.3 field goal percentage for the game. 
- Monmouth hit 10 three-pointers in the game while holding the Cougars to just two triples. The Hawks moved to 4-0 when they hit 10 or more three-pointers in a game.
- The Cougars held a 36-33 edge in the rebounding battle. 
- Monmouth tallied five blocks in the game, its 19th game of the season with five or more blocks. 
 
NEXT UP
Monmouth will be back in action on Sunday, Mar. 3 when it travels to Hofstra for a 2 p.m. game.