NEW ROCHELLE, NY — The Monroe women’s basketball team came in Thursday’s contest with Union County College in desperate need of a win. A late comeback proved to fall a little short, as the Mustangs fell to the Owls, 66-57, in a game played at the Monroe Athletic Complex in New Rochelle. Samantha Hines finished with game-bests of 25 points and 14 rebounds.
Destini Green opened the scoring with a baseline jumper that rattled around and fell in the hoop. The Owls countered with a 7-0 run to go ahead, 7-2 and forced Monroe to use a timeout.
Following the timeout, Venesa Jordan was left open behind the three-point-line and the freshman calmly drained the trifecta with 6:34 left. About a minute later, Hines got a steal at half court and took the ball back for a layup to tie the game at 7-7. However, the Owls closed out the quarter on a 16-7 run to lead 23-14 after one.
A layup at the 6:32 mark of the second quarter put Union County ahead by 20, 34-14. However, the Mustangs methodically chipped away at the deficit and pulled to within single digits. Jordan hit consecutive three-pointers to cut the gap to 14, 34-20. Strong defense led to a stop and Camilla Kilnic found Hines in transition for a bucket. A put back from Gabrielle Jubinville at 2:01 pulled Monroe with ten points, 34-24. A Green foul shot with 0:30 left got the deficit to nine, but a Union County buzzer beater made the score, 36-25 at the half.
Monroe fought hard in the second half, but fell in the end, 66-57. Samantha Hines recorded her fourth double-double of the season. She also set a new career high with 25 points and shot 10-14 in the loss. Green had seven points and eight assists while Jordan shot 3-6 from behind the three-point line.
The Monroe College women’s basketball team returns to action on Friday, December 4, when they participate in the Lake Michigan Tournament in Michigan. The opponent and start time are still unknown.