LOUDONVILLE, NY - The Iona College women's soccer team lost to No. 4 Siena, 2-0, in the MAAC Quarterfinals on Sunday afternoon at Hickey Field.
Siena got after Iona fast, beginning the match with a pair of corners in the opening five minutes. The first shot came on the second corner, a header from Emily McNelis that sailed up and over the crossbar. Kiera Haggerty responded with Iona's first shot on the other end, missing the mark as well.
Siena's counter attack off of Haggerty's missed shot led to a deep throw-in on Iona's side of the field. The ball was crossed into the box, where Carrie Krohn volleyed one inside the near post to give the Saints a 1-0 lead in the 10th minute.
The Gaels had their first corner of the match less than a minute after the goal, but could not generate a shot from the setpiece. On the other end, McNelis watched as another dangerous chance missed wide. In the 24th minute, McNelis was stopped twice on back-to-back chances; the first was saved by Emma Havrilla, while the second was blocked by an Iona defender.
It seemed that Iona would grab the momentum with just over 16 minutes remaining when Haggerty was awarded a penalty kick after being taken down in the box. The referee and assistant referee huddled and after a brief discussion ruled that there was a handball violation against Haggerty prior to the foul. It resulted in a free kick for Siena, erasing a potentially huge chance for Iona to even the score midway through the first half. Momentum swung completely in Siena's favor when they scored with just about three minutes remaining in the half.
The Saints carried the 2-0 lead into the half and packed it in defensively in the final 45 minutes, keeping Iona off of the scoreboard and eliminating the Gaels from the MAAC postseason.
NOTABLE NUGGETS
- Iona's historic season comes to a close with a final overall record of 11-8-0. The Gaels had been selected to finish tenth in the league's preseason poll, ending the regular season on a six-game win streak and finishing tied for fourth.
- Siena continues to be Iona's kryptonite, getting the better of the Maroon & Gold in the last 11 meetings and for the fourth time in the last two seasons.
- The Gaels were narrowly outshot, 9-8, including 3-2 in shots on goal. Siena had eight corners compared to Iona's four.
SOCIAL MEDIA
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