Towson Tigers’ Rally Falls Short in Hard-Fought Battle Against Monmouth Hawks
By: Kylie Jones, Staff Writer
Following a one point victory on the road against UNCW, the Towson Tigers made their conference play debut at home as they took on the Monmouth Hawks. After an 0-6 start to the Hawks season, they’ve managed to win six of their last seven games, posing a major threat to the 3-10 Tigers.
The Tigers’ shooting would start off shakily, a theme that has perpetuated throughout their season. Heading into a media timeout, Towson was shooting just 2-11, with made jumpers by guard India Johnston and guard Semaya Turner.
The Tigers trailed 11-4, but would start to show some fight. A strong offensive board from freshman forward Khady Leye would result in a made pull-up jumper from forward Anasia Staton. Staton would drop in another jumper following a turnover from Monmouth.
“We didn’t get the result that we would have desired,” said Head Coach, Laura Harper. “This team is improving. We found a way to execute. In the end, they were locked in there.”
A number of misses for the Tigers would close out the first quarter with a score of 14-8. Towson would lose the first quarter rebounding battle five below the Hawks, and would shoot 25% from the field, but remained 0-4 from beyond the arch.
Forward Kayla Morris would get things going for the Tigers with a jumper to start the second quarter. India Johnston would finish an exciting four-point play after drawing the foul on a made three-pointer.
Towson worked to close the gap with Monmouth and after a made jumper by guard Aminata Diakite, they were now within two of the Hawks. Monmouth, however, would respond with six straight points for themselves. Deja Bristol would finish strong at the glass to close out the first half with a score of 26-22, Tigers trailing.
The third quarter would elicit a strong second half performance from Khady Leye on both sides of the floor. She was able to finish two hard-fought layups of her own and assisted one to Turner. Leye was also executing on defense, and remained a problem on the glass for the Hawks.
After putting up two more points for the Tigers, Turner was able to strip the ball from Monmouth resulting in a fast-break layup for Johnston. Morris would drop in a layup and Staton would finish two of her own at the rim, with the Tigers only trailing by one.
Baynes knocked down a crucial jumper that would put the Tigers on top for the first time this game. The third quarter would end in a 41-41 draw.
A battle was now underway as the teams would fight back-and-forth for the lead. Leye would assert herself yet again with a made jumper, an assist to Johnston, and a steal to start the quarter.
Another steal from Leye would result in Staton hitting one in the paint for Towson, who were back to trailing by one. Staton would add three more points for the Tigers, but they remained behind, now with a score of 55-51, in favor of the Hawks.
With just shy of one minute left, the Tigers would need to execute on all levels if they wanted to take this win. After timeouts by both teams, Towson would fall short of their last minute effort, after attempting a purposely missed free throw, in hopes of an offensive rebound.
“We’re staying positive, staying motivated and continuing to rebound,” said Coach Laura Harper. “Tonight we lost the board battle, there are things we need to tighten.”
The Tigers look to take home a conference win against preseason favorites, NC A&T on Sun. Jan. 12 at 2 p.m.
