West Long Branch, NJ – Behind a lockdown defensive effort and thanks to a pair of late Emma Von Essen threes, the Hofstra women's basketball team walked away from OceanFirst Bank Center with a 45-44 win over hosts Monmouth on the first day of March.
 
The Pride jumps to 7-20 overall and 5-11 in CAA contests, while Monmouth drops to 18-10 overall and 11-6 in league action.
 
Chloe Sterling led a balanced scoring attack with nine points and four assists, followed by eight points from Von Essen and Sandra Magolico. Magolico led the Pride with seven rebounds, two blocks, and a career-high seven steals.
 
The Pride raced out to a four-point lead behind Magolico and Sterling baskets, but Monmouth responded with a 5-0 run to lead by one with 6:18 left in the first quarter. The teams traded the lead twice over the course of a minute before Hofstra pulled ahead by three with a pair of Micaela Carter free throws and an Ayen Angoi layup. Monmouth cut the lead to two with a free throw at 2:29, but a shot from the charity stripe by Sterling with 24 seconds left put the difference back at three heading into the second quarter.
 
A three from Carter and an Angoi close-range jumper pushed Hofstra's advantage to eight inside the first 1:47 of the second quarter, but Monmouth halved the lead with four straight points. Two-pointers by Sterling and Nevaeh Brown, plus a free throw by Ema Karim, gave Hofstra a nine-point lead with 4:22 to go before halftime, but Monmouth ended the second quarter with a 7-0 rally inside the final 2:31 of the quarter to put the Pride's lead at two points.
 
The teams traded points inside the opening minutes of the third quarter before an Alarice Gooden gave Hofstra a 28-21 lead at the 6:32 mark. Monmouth scored five points over the next 49 seconds to whittle the lead to just two, but a three by Brown and a midrange jumper from Gooden put the Pride's lead back at seven with 3:58 remaining in the quarter. Monmouth took its first lead since 4:40 of the first quarter with an 8-0 rally before Hofstra pulled back ahead with two Sterling free throws at 1:18. Monmouth converted a turnover at 1:05 into a go-ahead basket to put the Hawks ahead by two heading into the fourth quarter.
 
Hofstra retook the lead through a Magolico layup on the first shot of the fourth quarter, but Monmouth rattled off six unanswered points to take a five-point lead at the 7:41 mark. Von Essen made it a three-point game with 7:27 to go on a contested layup, and she tied the score 42-42 on an open three from the corner at 3:17. Divine Dibula put the Hawks back in front with a jumper in the paint with 2:51 left in regulation, but Von Essen one-upped her tying shot with a deep go-ahead with 1:53 to go. Hofstra's defense clamped down on Monmouth for the remainder of regulation, including on a pivotal defensive stop with 3.9 seconds left, to come away with the important conference win.
 
Divine finished with 10 points for Monmouth, and Ella Farrelly pulled down 10 rebounds.
 
Hofstra closes out its home schedule and honors its seven seniors on the roster on Thursday, March 5, against Drexel at 6 p.m.
 
NOTES:
-Hofstra is now 8-11 all-time against Monmouth.
-This is Hofstra's first win this season in games decided by three points or fewer. The Pride was previously 0-8 in close games.
-Hofstra has won its last five Sunday contests.
-Hofstra allowed Monmouth to shoot just 11.8% (2-17) from beyond the arc, the lowest three-point field goal percentage allowed to a Division I opponent this season.
-Monmouth has committed 40 turnovers in both meetings against the Pride this season.
-Magolico has totaled 12 steals in two games against the Hawks this season.