The Hofstra University women’s basketball team ended the year on a high note with a 59-43 win over Iona University on Sunday, Dec. 29. The Pride moved to 5-6 while the Gaels fell to 4-8.
LaNae’ Corbett had the game of her life on Sunday, scoring a career-high 24 points on 11-16 shooting with six rebounds and four steals. Corbett was often left open, and her teammates exploited those defensive lapses throughout the game.
“I went up to my teammates at halftime and thanked them for feeding me,” Corbett said. “Giving them grace as well … I wouldn’t get those points if not for them feeding me the ball.”
The freshman forward has struggled at times playing defense without fouling, but she has managed to remain impactful in the paint while only committing three fouls.
“It makes me feel good,” Corbett said. “And it makes me want to keep going and push for better goals.”
Corbett set the tone early, scoring Hofstra’s first six points. The Pride left the first quarter with a 20-12 lead thanks to Corbett’s nine points and Chloe Sterling’s five.
The Pride forced several Iona miscues in the second quarter and took advantage, scoring eight points off turnovers.
“Defensively I think there were a lot of bright spots in how we defended and what we needed to do,” said Hofstra head coach Danielle Santos Atkinson.
Corbett added another seven points and hauled two offensive rebounds in the second quarter.
All eight of Iona’s points in the second quarter came from their bench, with two three-pointers from Mya Zaccagnini keeping the Gaels within 15 points at halftime.
The Gaels struggled from the field in the first half, shooting just 25%. Iona turned this on its head in the third though, going 44% and putting up 17 points. Judith Gomez scored their first eight points of the quarter and led the Gaels with 13 points on the afternoon. Iona went into the fourth quarter trailing by 10 but had scored five straight points.
In the fourth quarter, it was once again the Corbett show: she scored the only two buckets in the first four minutes to help put Hofstra in the driver’s seat. Iona never cut Hofstra’s lead to single digits and shot a dismal 3-16 from the field, scoring only six points in the final frame.
Despite mixed results, Santos was pleased with the team’s performance in non-conference play and said that their continued growth will make for a solid Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) season.
“Throughout this time, it was about understanding who we are,” Santos said. “Now, going into conference play, we’re continuing to build in areas where we’re great and continuing to work on the areas that we need to develop and grow in … This team is gelling every day.”
Hofstra’s next action will be the beginning of conference play on Friday, Jan. 3, as the Pride travels to West Long Branch, New Jersey, to take on their first CAA opponent of the season, Monmouth University. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. at OceanFirst Bank Center.
