BROOKLYN – The fourth-seeded Monroe College – Bronx women's basketball team knocked off the top-seeded and nationally ranked No. 14 Hostos Community College, in the Region 15 Semifinal game by a score of 75-58, at Kingsborough Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon. The Express earn a berth in the regional championship game for the third straight year, which will take place on Sunday at Kingsborough at 12:00 p.m., against the winner of the other semifinal contest between third-seeded Kingsborough Community College and second-seeded/nationally ranked No. 10 Nassau Community College. The Express will aim to win their third consecutive regional championship.
 
"Biggest credit goes to our players," Express Head Coach Damel Ling said. "We stuck to the game plan, and everybody stepped up."
 
Leading the way for Monroe – Bronx (17-16) was freshman guard Daysiah Smith who scored a game-high 25 points, grabbed four rebounds, forced just as many steals, and delivered a pair of assists. First-year guard Tiffany Newsome provided a double-double off the bench with 19 points and 14 boards, while collecting a trio of steals and dishing out a pair of assists. Rookie guard Tymere Moorer had a solid afternoon with 12 points, eight caroms, four steals, and three assists. Sophomore forward Xing Stewart-Greer made an impact with 10 points, seven rebounds, and a blocked shot. First-year guard Angeleny Cobos scored seven points and snatched a rebound.
 
In the opening quarter, the Express fell behind by a score of 11-8. Monroe turned it around as back-to-back buckets by Smith put the Blue and Gold in front, 12-11, with 3:49 to go in the stanza. A pair of free throws by first-year forward Chyna Bryant allowed the Caimans (21-5) to regain the lead. A few possessions later, Smith converted a layup that propelled Monroe to a 14-13 benefit with 1:41 left to play in the opening period. The Express' defense came up big as their contesting prevented Hostos from scoring for the remaining in the stanza. Monroe had a chance to increase its lead before the end of the period and took full advantage as Smith nailed a floater just before the buzzer to propel her team to a 16-13 vantage after 10 minutes of play. 
 
The Express dominated the second quarter, outscoring the Caimans 19-11 during the frame. Monroe's strong finish at the end of the first quarter carried over into the second, as the Blue and Gold opened the stanza with a 16-3 blitz to balloon its lead to 32-16, with 3:04 to go. Moorer converted two layups and a jumper during the run and then freshman guard Jah Gunter capped off the run with a layup to give the Express the 16-point lead with just over three minutes left before the break. After Hostos hit a pair of free throws, Cobos took a feed from classmate Tiffany Newsome and drained a 3-point basket to give the Express their largest lead of the half at 35-18, with 2:17 remaining. Hostos finished the second quarter strong with a 6-0 run to cut Monroe's benefit to 35-24 heading into the break. 
 
The Caimans closed the gap during the middle stages of the third quarter, as a triple by sophomore guard Arianna Wilder shrunk Monroe's lead to 41-36 with 5:12 left to play in the stanza. The Express flipped their switch back on and finished the rest of the quarter on a 9-3 run, highlighted by three timely baskets from inside the arc by Newsome to allow Monroe to gain more breathing room with a 50-39 benefit after three quarters of action. 
 
The Express gained control of the contest during the early stages of the fourth quarter as a layup by Stewart-Greer padded Monroe's advantage to 61-46 with 5:50 remaining. Just 37 seconds later, Stewart-Greer capitalized on another layup to give Monroe a 17-point cushion. The Express continued to build its benefit as a layup by Cobos gave her team a 71-51 vantage with 3:09 remaining.  Monroe managed to take its largest lead of the afternoon, at 75-52, thanks to another layup courtesy of Cobos with 1:53 to go on its way to the semifinal victory and a berth in the regional championship game.
 
For the Caimans, Bryant produced a double-double with 15 points and 15 rebounds. Sophomore guard Kendra Sanchez tallied 15 points, four rebounds, three assists, two steals, and a block.
 
For updates regarding Monroe's Region 15 Championship game on Sunday, check out MonroeExpress.com as well as our social media channels.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College 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 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 seven 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/X (@MonroeExpress), Instagram (@MonroeExpress), and Threads (@MonroeExpress).