This is a big week for the Monmouth University women's basketball team. Following Saturday afternoon's 61-55 loss to Robert Morris, head coach Stephanie Gaitley's Hawks find themselves at 10-10 on the year, and 5-5 in Northeast Conference play. That places them in the middle of the NEC pack in fifth place, and with the eight-team NEC Tournament rapidly approaching, the Hawks have reached a point where they need to play winning basketball over the next few weeks if they hope to make a run at a conference title.

Heading into Saturday's game at the Sewall Center, MU was feeling pretty good about itself. The Hawks had won five straight games, including a big win over a Quinnipiac team (60-48 on Jan. 17) that is ahead of the Hawks in the standings.

The Hawks have been showing improved play under Gaitley in recent weeks, and have every reason to be optimistic about this season's potential.

However, they will need to get healthy quick if they hope to reach that potential.

Against Robert Morris, the Hawks were short-handed, as starting point guard Alexis Canady and senior forward Laura Forbes were both out nursing injuries. The Colonials, who have now won six straight games of their own and are 11-10 and 8-2 in league play, took advantage, wearing down the Hawks late in the game following what was a back-and-forth affair.

"We had our chances to beat them, but we just got tired," Gaitley said following the loss. "And we have to understand that when you're tired in games like this, you have to be mentally tough and play smart, and we didn't do that."

RMU stretched its lead to 55-49 with just over two minutes to go before Monmouth freshman Alexis Scott drilled a three-pointer from the right wing to cut the lead to one possession with 1:55 to go. After Jennifer Bender hit a free throw to cut the Colonials'lead to 57- 55 with 1:04 left in the game, MU came up with a defensive stop, and appeared poised to pull off the unlikely upset.

Unfortunately, a Bender three-pointer didn't fall with 27 seconds left, and RMU's Kendra Williams was able to seal the game with a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 59-55 with 20.4 seconds left.

Early on, the Hawks looked very good, jumping out to an early 11-10 lead after Bender converted a traditional three-point play with 10:32 left in the first half. The senior then extended Monmouth's narrow lead to 17-14 with a lay in at the 6:37 mark of the opening half. MU's lead was stretched to 23-16 after Bender continued her stellar first half (nine points) with a slash to the basket and a score with 2:10 to go before halftime. However, the Colonials made a late first-half run and cut Monmouth's lead to 25-23 at halftime. Along with Bender, Scott and senior LaKia Barber played well in the first half, each scoring six points. Senior Marisa Jimenez contributed five rebounds and three assists in the first half for MU.

RMU picked up right where they left off after the break, and regained the lead at 31- 30 with a three at the 15:45 mark of the second half. The Hawks took a brief 34-33 lead after a Bender floater in the lane, but RMU then regained a two-point lead on the ensuing possession after Sade Logan (game-high 21 points) canned a three with 12:02 left in the game. The Colonials maintained their two-point lead at 45-43 after Kendra Williams scored in the lane with 7:46 left in the game, and were able to hold off a tiring Hawks team down the stretch to capture the important win.

Bender led the way for MU with her fourth double-double of the season, scoring 18 points and pulling down 12 rebounds, while Barber added 13 points and Scott chipped in with 12 points, five rebounds and three assists. Jimenez scored six points, pulled down five rebounds and dished out a team-high four assists in the game. While RMU was paced by Logan's 21 points, Williams added 19 points and seven rebounds.

The Hawks concluded their swoon through Western Pennsylvania when they visited Saint Francis University on Monday evening in Loretto. On Saturday, St. Francis of New York comes to West Long Branch for a 3 p.m. start. Monmouth beat the Terriers back on Jan. 12, 63-56, behind a strong 22- point, 13-rebound effort from Bender. They'll likely need a similar effort on Saturday.

Then, on Monday, the Hawks will host Bryant in a 7 p.m. affair. Bryant recently lost to St. Francis, 80-75, to fall to 6-13 on the season.

Following the loss to FDU, the Hawks found themselves in fifth place in the NEC, a half game behind St. Francis and a full game behind Quinnipiac.

Sacred Heart sits atop the NEC at 10-0 in conference play, followed by Robert Morris (8-2) and Central Connecticut State (7-3).

As the regular season winds down, Monmouth has very little room for error the rest of the way. With a number of games over the next few weeks against winning teams, the Hawks will need to continue to progress.

The 2009 NEC Women's Basketball Tournament is an eight-team format with the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds will be played at predetermined host Sacred Heart. The host of the championship game will be the highest remaining seed.

The NEC Tournament quarterfinal play is set for Saturday, March 7, followed by the semifinal round on Sunday, March 8. The NEC championship game will be held on Sunday, March 15.