The Hofstra women’s basketball team continues to plummet with another loss at the hands of their Long Island rival, the Stony Brook University Seawolves, 70-60 on Sunday, Feb. 12.
After a stunning buzzer-beater win in the previous game against Towson University on Thursday, Feb. 9, the Pride sought to salvage the rest of the season with seven games remaining. However, the loss to Stony Brook – along with many previous games of the same result – digs a bigger hole for the Pride with games down the stretch.
“It was a tough one, especially down the stretch,” said Hofstra head coach Danielle Santos Atkinson. “We had some costly mistakes, but I thought there were some things that we did do well. But, again, we had too many turnovers, and we can’t allow them too many points off those turnovers.”
With Brandy Thomas out of the lineup, multiple players stepped up in the effort for the Pride. Zyheima Swint dominated inside the paint with 18 points and six rebounds.
“I thought she stepped up tonight,” Atkinson said. “She made her presence known even with some foul trouble in the first half, which I think hurt us a bit. She had a great inside presence in the paint. But I thought her production was one that we needed, that we haven’t had in the past few games.”
Outside the paint, Emma Von Essen and Sorelle Ineza also shined, providing their perimeter shooting to keep the Pride within reach of the Seawolves. Von Essen and Ineza shot a combined 10-18 from the field and 4-8 from behind the arc.
“Emma played well,” Atkinson said. “She’s shooting the ball well and continuing to be aggressive, which is what we need from her. I thought she definitely stepped up today and was really looking for a shot to try to create possessions for us so we can have a better opportunity to score.”
The Pride and Seawolves balanced the pace in the first half, with Stony Brook leading 35-29 at the break. Nevertheless, the Pride continued to struggle in the second half, as they have in many recent games.
“I thought we played with great tempo, and we were able to get stops and able to push it and run it out the net, which is what we didn’t do in the second half,” Atkinson said. “We were allowing them too many baskets and finishes at the rim, especially off the turnovers.”
The Seawolves had five players who scored in double figures, with Anatasia Warren and Gigi Gonzalez paving the way for the Seawolves with 19 and 14 points respectively. Sherese Pittman also played big in the paint with 10 rebounds for the Seawolves along with a 13-point performance. The Pride had a better overall field goal percentage, shooting 43.1% compared to Stony Brook’s 40.7%, but the Seawolves drained the 3-point shooting 31.8% against Hofstra’s 29.4%.
With the loss, the Pride continues to stumble to a 9-14 overall record and a 3-9 conference record. This game marked Hofstra’s eighth loss since the start of the new year. The Pride now has six games left in the season.
In their next matchup, the Hofstra women’s basketball team will face off against the University of Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens on Friday, Feb. 17, at the David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex with tipoff set for 7 p.m.
Photo courtesy of Hofstra Athletics
