JERSEY CITY, NJ – In a battle for first place in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference standings, the Saint Peter's Peacocks downed the Iona College men's soccer team 3-1 on Saturday. Despite having a man-up advantage for an entire half, the Maroon & Gold could not capitalize, conceding the match to Saint Peter's.

MATCH SUMMARY

In a battle of two of the top offenses in the conferences, it was the defense that shined brightest in the first half of action. Both teams had their chances in the opening half, but no one could find a goal.
 
Saint Peter's had six corner kicks by the 22-minute mark, but they could not register a shot on any of the six tries. Dominic Laws and Jordan Jowers tried two shots apiece, but neither could direct it on net. Iona's Joseph Cusano tested Herman Wulff early on in the match; Gabriel Cinanni wasn't tested for the entirety of the opening 45 minutes.
 
What seemed to be the turning point of the half, and perhaps the match, was the red card that was issued to Saint Peter's Matt Hoyt in the 39^th minute. The Peacocks would be a man down for the remainder of the afternoon; the Gaels could not take advantage of that across the final seven minutes of the first half. The two sides went into the locker rooms in a scoreless tie.
 
Esad Mackic and Francesc Chulia had chances on goal to open the second period of play, but Wulff stoned both. Cinanni was forced to make his first save of the match on a Jowers shot in the 56^th minute.
 
The Peacocks would break through first, scoring off of a free kick in the 65^th minute. The Maroon & Gold would provide an immediate answer though when Lenworth Lopez headed home a Josh Plimpton pass exactly 30 seconds later to tie the match. The Gaels would have a chance at a go-ahead goal less than three minutes later, but were called offside on the play.
 
Saint Peter's had corner kick tries in the 73^rd and 74^th minutes of play and came away with nothing. They would finally find the eventual game-winning goal on a flick header by Tom Coulson via another free kick opportunity.
 
Coulson would put the proverbial nail in the coffin with another tally eight minutes later, snapping Iona's eight-game unbeaten streak and building upon the Peacocks first-place lead.

NOTABLE NUGGETS

• Today's loss was Iona's first in league play and the team's first since they lost to No. 19 St. John's at Belson Stadium on September 10.
• The loss pushes Iona into a tie for second place; they now sit five points behind the Peacocks and two points ahead of Rider.
• Lopez's goal was his sixth of the season, tying him for the team-lead.
• Plimpton had the lone assist on the Gaels' goal, giving him six points on the year.
• Cinanni was saddled with his first loss of the season. His three goals allowed were a season-high for the sophomore keeper.
• Today marks just the third time all season that the Maroon & Gold have scored one goal or less in a match. The team is 0-2-1 in those matches.
• The Peacocks' 18 shots and 10 corner kicks are both season-highs for Iona opponents.
• Iona had allowed just six goals in its previous eight matches before conceding three to Saint Peter's today.

UP NEXT

Iona will return home to host Niagara on Wednesday, October 23. The match will begin at 3 PM and will be broadcasted on ESPN+.

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