BROCKTON, Mass. – The nationally ranked No. 8 Monroe University – Bronx women's basketball team opened the Northeast JUCO Cup Tournament with a 75-59 victory over Fulton - Montgomery Community College, at Massasoit Gymnasium, on Saturday afternoon. 
 
Monroe (2-1) fell behind by one with 3:54 remaining in the third quarter but then went on a 17-1 run in a span from the last 3:37 of the third stanza to the opening minute of the fourth to take a commanding 16-point hold and never looked back. 
 
"This is the first step but hopefully we come back with a bigger performance tomorrow," Express Head Women's Basketball Coach Damel Ling said. "This trip is helping us build camaraderie and prepare for the rest of the season."
 
Leading the way for Monroe was freshman guard Beverly Williams who netted 18 points, on 8-for-16 shooting from the field, while forcing a game-high eight steals, dishing out three assists, and grabbing a pair of rebounds. Freshman guard Latifa Marshall was a huge spark off the bench for Monroe, tallying 14 points, four steals, and a pair of boards. 
 
Rookie guard Salimah Williams had a solid performance with 13 points, four caroms, just as many helpers, and a duo of steals for the Express. Sophomore guard Tiffany Newsome had a near triple-double with 12 points, nine rebounds, and tying a game-best with eight steals. She also added four assists and a block.
 
Monroe – Bronx led from wire to wire in the opening half. The first-half domination was sparked by a 7-0 run to start the game. With 21 seconds left in the second quarter, a layup by Newsome off the fast break capped off a 12-3 run for the Express and gave them their largest lead of the half at 40-26. However, freshman guard Angelina Deitz buried a triple for the Raiders (0-2) with four seconds left to force Monroe to settle for an 11-point advantage heading into the intermission.
 
That 3-point shot Deitz hit at the end of the opening half gave Fulton - Montgomery momentum heading into the third quarter, as they scored the first 12 points of the period to make it a 15-0 run from the end of the second quarter to catapult the Raiders to a 41-40 edge in a blink of an eye. Monroe countered with a 4-1 run, capped off by Beverly Williams' jumper to put Monroe back in front, 44-42 with 5:12 to go in the period. The Raiders did not go away yet as a jumper by freshman center Liana Brown concluded a string of three straight points to put Monroe back in a one-point hole at 45-44 with 3:54 left in the third.
 
From that point, the Express completely took over the game as a layup by sophomore forward Da'Mya Cheatham not only allowed the Express to retake the lead, but it began a run of 12 straight points by Monroe to end the quarter. In the closing seconds of the period, Cheatham connected with Marshall who produced a layup just before the buzzer expired to give Monroe a comfortable 58-46 benefit after three quarters of play, after trailing less than four minutes prior.
 
The Express' momentum carried over into fourth as sophomore guard Tymere Moorer and Salimah Williams combined for back-to-back buckets to give Monroe its largest lead of the evening, at 62-46, with 9:13 remaining in regulation time. 
 
The Raiders had one more run in them as they scored 11 unanswered points to narrow Monroe's lead to 62-57 with 5:32 to go. However, Cheatham took a feed from Salimah Williams and converted a key layup to disrupt the opposition's momentum and give the Blue and Gold more breathing room at 64-57 with 5:05 remaining. That began a 13-2 run to finish the game for the Express as they went on to clinch the opening game of Northeast JUCO Cup Tournament play by a score of 75-59. 
 
Moorer had a solid evening for the Express with three points, six rebounds, four assists, and two steals. Cheatham added six points, five boards, an assist, and a block. Sophomore forward Makira Bunsie added two points and four rebounds.
 
For Fulton - Montgomery, sophomore guard Quincy Lake scored a game-high 21 points, while grabbing eight rebounds, dishing out three assists, and collecting a pair of steals. Deitz tallied 16 points, six caroms, and four assists. Rookie forward Shiasia Williams had a double-double with 13 points and a game-best 15 rebounds, while forcing two steals and dishing out two assists.
 
Monroe – Bronx will take on Hudson Valley Community College in the second game of the Northeast JUCO Cup Tournament on Sunday afternoon. Tipoff at Massasoit Gymnasium is set for 2:00 p.m. 
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE UNIVERSITY
The athletic program at Monroe University encompasses a total of 31 teams competing across nine sports. There are 21 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's and women's rugby, the Monroe University 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 seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
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