Pride snap five-game losing streak at expense of Morgan State

HEMPSTEAD, NY-- The Hofstra Pride women’s basketball team earned their second win of the season, snapping a five-game losing streak in a convincing win over the Morgan State University Lady Bears 51-39 on Wednesday, Dec. 4, at the David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex.

The Pride had three players in double digits. Senior center Marianne Kalin led the way with game-high totals of 18 points and nine rebounds while shooting 67% from the field.

Redshirt sophomore Jaylen Hines contributed 10 points, going 3-of-4 to start the game for 6 points in the opening quarter while adding nine rebounds, two assists and two steals. Freshman point guard Sorelle Ineza added 11 points to go along with three assists.

The victory on Wednesday was Hofstra’s first win since their opening night contest against Hartford University, and it also marked head coach Danielle Santos Atkinson’s first home win as head coach of the Pride.

“We know the potential of this team; we know how hard they work everyday. To be able to come home and get a victory in the fashion that we got it in with the stops we were able to get, it feels great,” Santos Atkinson said. “I’m happy for them to get that second win, we talked about not going backwards. We’ve got to build from this in practice for our game this Saturday.”

Hofstra’s defense had stretches of dominance throughout the contest, such as the end of the first half where the Pride’s zone defense forced shot clock violation and nearly two more on their final three possessions of the half, holding the Lady Bears to just six points in the quarter.

“The last few days we really dug in and worked on it in practice. We demanded that intensity and energy, and they bought in,” Santos Atkinson said . “They understood that when we’re long, active, and when we talk, we’re really tough to go against. They believed in it, it was great.”

The second half saw the Lady Bears try to tie the game, cutting the Hofstra lead to just one with 2:24 left in the third quarter, but a successful basketball and foul from Marianne Kalin pushed the momentum back in favor of the Pride.

The Pride put everything together in the fourth quarter as they began to pull away, out-scoring Morgan State 18-9 in the final frame. Ineza’s shooting in the second half played a large role in the Pride’s smooth running offense, scoring seven points by creating space off screens to knock down mid range shots and getting open off the ball for a wide open three to put the Pride up 12. With her shots falling, Ineza was able to open up the floor, feeding Kalin and Hines down low to dominate in the paint and stomp out any hopes for a comeback from the Lady Bears.

“This was a tough one for her with the pressure they applied, they pressed us and picked her up full-court the entire game, and she was able to handle that pressure with maturity. She was able to get us into our offense as well as staying aggressive offensively and looking for her shots,” Santos Atkinson said. “Her growth and maturity is really helping, and leading us on the floor.”

With the win, the Pride improves to 2-5 on the season, and look to build off their impressive outing when they go on the road to take on Fairfield University on Saturday, Dec. 7, at 2 p.m.

“Growth is what we’re working towards. We have long term goals that we are working to get to, and the many wins and successes that we have to get to that point are just going to feed our hunger and help motivate us to get to that point,” Santos Atkinson said.

Photo Courtesy of Hofstra Athletics