Charleston, SC – The Hofstra women's basketball team concluded its two-game road trip through the Carolinas with a 55-47 defeat against Colonial Athletic Association foe Charleston on Sunday from the TD Arena. Hofstra slips to 8-9 overall and 2-4 in the CAA following today's loss.
 
Brandy Thomas paced the Pride on both ends of the court with 12 points and 12 rebounds against the Cougars, and Alarice Gooden scored 11 points. Zyheima Swint pulled down seven rebounds and tied a career-high with three blocks.
 
The Cougars (7-8, 2-3 CAA) opened the game with a 4-0 run, all scored by Jada Logan, before Gooden put the Pride on the board with a layup at the 6:00 mark. Charleston maintained a lead over Hofstra with a 6-2 run, putting the hosts ahead by eight with 4:00 left in the quarter, before Ross-Barnes converted a second-half layup at 2:43. A jumper by Zaniyyah Ross-Barnes and five more points by Logan ended the first quarter with the score at 17-8 in favor of Charleston.
 
Ross-Barnes finished off a layup inside the first minute of the second quarter to bring the Pride to within seven, but Charleston utilized a 6-2 run to pull ahead, 23-12, at the 8:05 mark. Hofstra continued to battle throughout the quarter, bringing the deficit to single-digits on a Gooden three-pointer with 3:07 left before halftime, and the Pride scored five points inside the final 1:30 of the quarter with baskets by Thomas and Gooden, putting the score at 31-25.
 
After a Charleston three by Alexis Andrews opened the third quarter, Hofstra pulled back to within five off a pair of two-point layups by Swint and Rosi Nicholson at the 7:34 point. Charleston's Anika McGarity scored the next eight Cougar points to bring the home side's lead over Hofstra to 12 with 3:16 to go in the frame before a Sorelle Ineza trey bring the margin back to single digits. After a pair of Janaia Fargo free thows at 1:35, Logan scored the final three Charleston points of the third quarter to put the score at 45-34 entering the fourth quarter.
 
Andrews converted a fast-break layup inside the first minute of the fourth quarter to give Charleston a 13-point advantage over the Pride. Charleston's lead grew to as many as 14 points with 4:53 left in the contest. The Pride ended the game on a 7-2 run, but couldn't come any closer than nine points as the final buzzer blared.
 
Logan led all players with 25 points in today's game, and she pulled down six rebounds against Hofstra.
 
Hofstra returns to CAA action on January 22 with a home game against Northeastern (8-8, 3-2 CAA). Tip-off against the Huskies is 2 p.m. For ticket information, visit HofstraTickets.com, call (516) HOF-TIXX, or visit the Hofstra Athletics ticket office in the Mack Sports Complex during normal business hours.
 
NOTES:
-Hofstra outrebounded Charleston, 42-35. It was the first time in five games that Hofstra recorded more rebounds than their opponent.
-Since being held without a free throw against North Carolina A&T, Hofstra has gone 24-26 at the free throw line in its last two games.
-Thomas recorded her sixth double-double of the season and 34th-career double-double.
-The all-time series between Hofstra and Charleston is now even at 9-9.