NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y., December 12, 2021 – Wrapping up the Monroe College Men's & Women's Mixer at the Monroe Athletic Complex, the Monroe College Mustangs women's basketball team defeated Howard Community College, 62-40, Sunday evening. The Mustangs improve to 5-9 overall, and have won four of their last five games, while the Dragons drop to 4-6.
The Mustangs did not need long to take full control of the game on Sunday. With just under two minutes left in the first, a layup by
Naomi Barnwell made it an 11-2 lead for Monroe. After a turnover by Howard,
Aysia Pink knocked down a three, sending the game to the second with Monroe on top, 14-2.
Howard's Madison Carey scored the first two points of the second to make it a 10-point game. Threes by Barnwell and Pink pushed Monroe's lead up to 16 points, later reaching 17 on a jumper by
Daja Wentz. The Mustangs closed out the second on a 9-2 run, taking a 31-12 advantage into the half.
The Dragons cut the deficit to 17 points with 4:32 left in the third. The Mustangs followed with seven straight points to go up by 24. Howard's Kayla Allen hit a three with 38 seconds left, but Wentz closed out the period with a layup to make it a 46-23 contest heading to the final frame.
Monroe's lead peaked at 24 points when a three by Wentz pushed the lead to 59-35 with just 3:46 to play.
Anais Rosa hit a three late in the game to push Monroe's lead back to 23. The Dragons got a free throw in the final minute, but the Mustangs held on for a 22-point victory.
Wentz finished with a team-high 19 points in the win, picking up five rebounds, three assists and two steals as well. Barnwell tallied 18 points with eight boards and five assists.
Olivia Medford had a quieter game offensively, but still contributed with six rebounds, six steals and two assists. Pink made a trio of threes in the game to finish with nine points.
With this coming Wednesday's contest at ASA College postponed, the Mustangs have finished up play for the 2021 calendar year. They will get back to work on Sunday, Jan. 9, when they visit Hostos Community College in the Bronx. Tip-off for that one is set for 12 p.m.
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 35 teams competing across nine sports. There are 21 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as the Monroe College marching band, and the newly added esports and men's volleyball programs, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has 14 teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at
www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (
Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (
@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (
@monroemustangs).
