New Rochelle, N.Y., January, 15 2021 – The Monroe Express women's basketball team dropped their first contest of 2022 to undefeated and nationally-ranked No. 19 Sullivan County C.C., 68-41, on Saturday afternoon on the first day at the Monroe College MLK Classic at Monroe Athletic Complex. The loss ends the Express's two-game winning streaking dropping their record to 11-2 while the Generals stay perfect at 15-0.
Sophomore Tariah Bryant (Brooklyn, New York) headed the Express offensive attack with a team-high 12 points, hauled down a team-best six rebounds, and tied for another with two assists alongside freshman Shashauna Ballantyne (Brooklyn, New York). Fellow newcomers Fatima Thompson (Bronx, New York) and Maria Negron (Bronx, New York) reached new career-bests in scoring, with Thompson chipping in with nine points and Negron adding seven. Classmate Taina Maldonado (New York, New York) teamed up defensively with Thompson to snatch a team-high tied two steals apiece.
After both teams traded the first eight points, Deviejon Harris made back-to-back layups at 4:13 and 5:00 to give Sullivan County C.C. a four-point advantage 8-4. The Express got it to a two-point deficit twice layups from Rama at 3:07 to make it 8-6 and Traverso with a minute left to make it 10-8 before Malaysia Bryant recorded a fastbreak layin to give the visitors a 12-8 lead after one.
The Generals carried that momentum of that late bucket into the first 5:35 of the second quarter using a 12-0 run to push the lead to 16, 24-8 on a three-point play from Lanasia Drain at the 5:25 mark. However, the hosts would rally to cut that deficit to 11, 32-21 on a Spady layin with 57 seconds going into the halftime break.
The Express tried to fight back but never got any closer than 11 as the Generals outscored them 18-7 in the third quarter and 18-13 in the final quarter building their lead to 29, 66-37, the largest of the day en route to a 68-41 win.
Sullivan County Community College was led by Deivejon Harris, who dropped a game and career-high 24 points and brought down a game-best 17 boards. Kelsey Morgans chipped in with 11 points, all coming in the second half, with a game-best three three-pointers, while Barbara Bruno gave out a game-high seven assists, and Anisa Perry had a game-best three steals.
The Express women's basketball team will look to rebound tomorrow, January 16, on the second day of the Monroe College Martin Luther King Classic against Harcum College at 11 a.m. at the Monroe Athletic Complex. For more information, visit the Monroe Express Women's Basketball Schedule Page.
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 36 teams competing across nine sports. There are 19 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's and women's rugby, the Monroe College marching band, and the newly added esports program, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has 17 teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
For more information about the Monroe Express, please visit us at www.MonroeExpress.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe Express), Twitter (@MonroeExpress), and Instagram (@MonroeExpress).
