POUGHKEEPSIE, NY - After this morning's 15-9 win over Villanova University, the third-place Iona women's water polo team fell 10-5 to No. 23 Marist College in the first two of three Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference matches here this weekend.

Game 1: Iona 15 Villanova 9

Except for a brief first-period one-all tie, the Gaels (9-20, 6-3 MAAC) led the Wildcats the rest of the match. Senior Kayla Allen led Iona with five goals, while senior Hannah Schultz had four goals. Senior Devika Joshi and freshman Laura Rockett hit tallied two goals each, while senior Megan Hofer and freshman Jordan Van Reeken scored one goal apiece. Senior Britten Vilander made 11 saves on 22 Villanova shots and nabbed three steals. 

On defense, the Gaels blocked two shots and grabbed 15 steals with four from Van Reeken and three each from Schultz and Allen. Iona drew five Villanova kickouts, while being ejected 14 times. Hofer was disqualified with three ejections. The Gaels turned the ball over 12 times. Iona scored on three of six man-up opportunities, while Villanova capitalized on three-of-12 chances.

With 59 seconds gone in the match, Allen put Iona the board first, but Villanova answered on its next possession for a one-all tie with 6:26 remaining in the opening period. Two straight scores from Schultz gave the Gaels a 3-1 lead at the 4:05 mark. Allen's low skip shot extended the Gael advantage to 4-1 with 1:17 remaining, followed by Rockett's goal on Iona's next possession for a 5-1 lead going into the second quarter.

Two consecutive Iona goals by Joshi and Allen in the opening 1:28 of the second quarter put the Gaels up 7-1. After the Iona defense stopped Villanova from scoring when Vilander was ejected, the Wildcats hit two unanswered goals to pull within four 7-3 with 4:12 on the clock. Schultz's third goal put Iona back up by five 8-3 until two more Villanova scores trimmed the Gael edge to three 8-5 with 2:52 remaining. Just 1:07 later, Hofer gave Iona a 9-5 lead, then Villanova scored with 31 ticks left as the Gaels led 9-6 at intermission.

The Wildcats got within two 9-7 with 1:35 gone in the third quarter, but Van Reeken gave the Gaels a three-goal edge 10-7 only 54 seconds later. Allen's fourth goal upped the Iona lead to 11-7 with 3:42 on the clock until Villanova again cut Iona's advantage to three 11-8 just 20 ticks later. With 2:29 remaining, Rockett hit her second goal to give the Gaels a 12-8 lead going into the final period.

Three consecutive goals from Schultz, Allen and Joshi in the fourth period sealed the 15-9 win as the Gael defense held the Wildcats scoreless until the final 55 seconds.
 
Game 2: Marist 10, Iona 5

Down only two goals midway through the third period, the Gaels failed to capitalize on numerous scoring chances, especially man-up opportunities, despite a strong defensive effort.

Allen led the Gaels with two goals, while Joshi, Van Reeken and Hofer added one score each.

On defense, Iona made 12 steals and one blocked shot. The Gaels drew eight Red Foxes kickouts, while being ejected eight times. Senior Karli Normand was disqualified with three ejections. The Gaels turned the ball over 11 times. Iona scored on two-of-11 man-up chances, while Marist capitalized on two-of-seven opportunities.

Vilander made three saves on 16 Marist shots and added steals in the first three periods. Redshirt sophomore Jordin Hale made two saves on four Marist shots and collected one steal in the fourth quarter.

Marist got on the board first with 2:51 gone in the match, and followed with a second goal 1:41 later to lead 2-0 with 3:28 on the clock. With 1:19 remaining, the hosts tacked on another score, but Joshi's buzzer-beating goal trimmed the Marist edge to 3-1 going into the second period.

With two straight Red Foxes goals in the opening 1:21, the Gaels fell behind 5-1 with 6:39 on the clock. Iona rallied with its own 2-0 run with Van Reeken and Hofer scoring to close the gap to two 5-3 at the 5:16 mark. After a Gaels timeout with 16 ticks left, Iona failed to score on a 6-5 advantage and still trailed 5-3 at intermission.

The hosts added another score with 1:05 gone in the third quarter until Allen got Iona back within two, 6-4 with 4:52 remaining. The Red Foxes struck again on their next possession, but Allen's second goal trimmed their lead to 7-5 at the 4:14 mark. Two straight Marist scores in the closing two minutes, including one at the last second, increased its lead to 9-5 going into the final period.

Just 25 ticks into the fourth quarter, the Red Foxes upped their advantage to five 10-5 to seal the win as the Gaels failed to score in the final period.

While pleased his squad's win over Villanova, Iona head coach Brian Kelly was disappointed with offensive lapses against Marist, especially failing to score on man-up advantages.

"Our six-on-five offense really hurt us today," Kelly said. "Going 2-11 with plenty of open looks and not taking the right shot was our downfall in the Marist game."

The Gaels wrap up their weekend here against Virginia Military Institute tomorrow at 10:30 a.m.