Joelle Connelly (Arcade, NY) provided the late-game heroics, hitting a jumper from the foul line as time expired to push Hofstra to a 57-55 victory over Towson in a CAA matchup Thursday night at the Mack Sports Complex.
It marked Hofstra's first buzzer-beating victory since Jen Brickey nailed an under-handed 18-footer as time expired to defeat William & Mary, 80-78, on February 8, 2003.
Niki Williams (Pittsburgh, PA) set up the exciting finish, establishing a career-high with 11 assists and was also one of four Pride players to score in double figures. The senior guard logged her third career double-double and became the first Pride player to register double-figure assists this season. She finished just two assists shy of the school record, set by Liz Irwin during the 1979-80season.
Connelly's catch-and-shoot off Jess Fuller's pass marked her second buzzer-beating shot of the season. The freshman previously hit a shot with time expiring to send the December 6 contest against Buffalo into overtime. Hofstra won that contest as well, and improved to 10-5 and 2-2 in conference play with the victory over the Tigers. Towson dropped to 9-5 and 1-3.
Connelly finished with a team-high 16 points. Fuller (Queens, NY) complemented her effort with her seventh double-double this season, pouring in 12 points and 10 rebounds. The junior forward now claims 13 career double figure scoring games. Junior guard Sam Brigham (Simsbury, CT) chipped in 10 points, three rebounds and two steals.
Shanae Baker-Brice led the Tigers with 21 points. The junior nearly gave Towson the road win, knocking down a heavily contested off-balance shot with the shot clock expiring to move Towson ahead, 55-53, with 1:04 left. The Pride worked it inside on the next possession when Fuller (Queens, NY) drew the foul and made both free throws to even it up 18 seconds later.
Towson missed a chance to go ahead at the free throw line after Kandace Davis hit rim on both attempts after drawing a foul driving for a lay-in, giving the Pride possession with 30.2 left on the clock before Connelly's clutch shot.
Towson went ahead by as much as six points before Hofstra's comeback. Baker-Brice's steal allowed the Tigers to take possession and Omara Parker capitalized off the turnover by hitting Davis for a layup, putting Towson up 45-39 for its largest lead 7:54 into the second half.
Fuller and Connelly added consecutive field goals, cutting it 47-46. Williams then added scoring to her repertoire after reaching the double-figure assist threshold, hitting a contested three to put Hofstra up by two. Connelly's free throw after another Pride defensive stop capped Hofstra's 9-0 run, putting the home team up 50-47 with 6:34 remaining.
Williams' previous career high for assists was nine, last set January 4 against Northeastern. Sophomore forward Ashley Wilcots (Virginia Beach, VA) added five points and two rebounds off the bench. Simona Petronyte made three three-pointers and was the only other Towson player to score more than 10 points (11).
Hofstra surged to an 11-point edge nearly seven minutes into the contest, holding Towson on 1-10 shooting at the outset. But Baker-Brice's 12 first-half points allowed Towson to erase the double-digit deficit.
Fuller picked up six points, making her first three shots to go along with four rebounds before heading to the bench following her second foul 11:09 into the game. She returned nearly six minutes later, finishing the half with six points as Hofstra was able to find opportunities in the paint. Connelly added eight points in the post, helping Hofstra build a 14-3 lead.
Towson generated 12 steals and soon closed the gap. Simona Petronyte hit an open three-pointer near the top of the key with 1:56 left and Baker-Brice drilled a jumper on the next possession to knot the score at 26 heading into halftime.
Hofstra will next be in action Sunday when it hosts CAA-rival William and Mary. Tipoff for the matinee is set for 2 p.m.
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