New Rochelle, N.Y., December 8, 2021 - The Monroe Express JV women's basketball team lost a tightly contested battle to visiting Five Towns College, 78-70 on Wednesday night at Monroe Athletic Complex. The Express fall to 3-3 with the loss while the Sound pick up their first win of the season, improving to 1-5.

Three Express players scored in double figures, with freshman Magan Jackson (Bronx, New York) leading the way with a game-high 24 points and tied another game best with four steals. Classmate Kryshana Levy (Bronx, N.Y.) drained a career-high 17 points and just missed a double-double by one rebound with nine boards on the night. Doretha Brooks (Bronx, New York) scored 11 points, and Sophia Gonzalez (Brooklyn, New York) brought down 11 rebounds. Gonzalez also dished out a game-best four assists and swatted a game-high three shots.

After trading the first eight points, Five Towns College took control the rest of the first quarter outscoring Monroe-Bronx 21-9 to take their largest lead of the half by 14, 25-11 at 1:10 on Nikki Kemp three-pointer and led 25-13 after the first.

Five Towns notched the first five points of the second quarter before the Express responded on a tear with a 21-4 run to take the lead 36-34 on a Levy layup at 2:21 and head into halftime in front 38-36.

Five Towns College opened the third quarter with the first six points to go back in front 42-38 on a Nikki Kemp jumper at 8:23 before the Express responded with a 10-2 run to retake the lead 48-44 at 5:54 on two Jackson free-throws. The Sound answered with a 7-2 run to retake the lead by one, 51-50 at 3:43 on a layup from Neptalie Dorce before both teams exchanged the lead three times to close out the third quarter. 

Jackson went 2-for-2 at the free-throw line to put the Express back in front 52-51, then Rasauna Melendez went 1-for-2 at the line to lock up the score up at 52. Alexis Marrero (Bronx, New York) scored on a fastbreak layup at 1:58 to give the Express the lead back 54-52, and after the Sound scored the following three points, Kassandra Marks (Harlem, New York) tied it up again at 56 at 1:16 on a layup. After an Essence Rayford jumper and Maria Medina free-throw got the lead back to three, 59-56 for Five Towns, Monroe-Bronx would close the third quarter with the last four points - 2-for-2 at the line from Marks and a Marrero layup - to lead 60-59 going into the final stanza.

The final quarter was a barnburner between both squads as the Sound registered four of the quarter's first five points to pull ahead 63-61 on an Essence Rayford jumper at 7:35. Brooks buried a three-pointer to put the Express back in front, 64-63 at 4:48, and then Levy extended the advantage to three, 66-63 on a layup at 3:36 before the Sound took over for good with a 15-4 run down the stretch to take the game 78-70.

Five Towns College had four players finish the evening in double figures and one posting a double-double. Essence Rayford led the pack in scoring with a team-high 19 points, while Jordan Tobin put up a double-double with 16 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, and Nikki Kemp and Rasauna Melendez had 11 points and 10 points, respectively. Maria Medina just missed a double-double by one point with 9 points on the night and grabbed 10 rebounds while dishing out three assists, and Gabrielle Sutphin tied a game-best with four steals.

The Express look to bounce back tonight against Westchester Community College at 6 p.m. at Viking Gymnasium in Valhalla, New York. For more information, visit the Monroe Express JV Women's Basketball Page.