BROOKLYN, NY – After a 14-7 win over St, Francis College, the Iona women's water polo team fell one goal short 11-10 of upsetting no.23-ranked Long Island University this evening on today's two-game Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference road trip here.
Iona 14 St. Francis 7
After two ties in the first period, the Iona outscored St. Francis 8-1 for the rest of the first half in a 14-7 MAAC win over the Terriers this morning with eleven Gaels finding the back of the net. Graduate student Laura Rockett, graduate student Jordan van Reeken and sophomore Kaya Hart led the Maroon and Gold with two goals each.
Graduate student Danielle Hernandez, graduate student Aubree Fuher, senior Sydney Brightenburg, senior Malia Naugle, senior Maeve Ellen Wydan, senior Karsyn Stewart, junior Amelia Gonzalez and junior Mia Tovar each had one goal. The Gaels scored 14 goals on 35 shots and made 14 assists with three from Gonzalez.
In goal, freshman Mary Jane Bailey made 12 saves on 25 St. Francis shots made one steal and one assist with seven goals against. On defense, Iona made nine steals with three by van Reeken, and blocked two Terriers shots. Iona drew ten St. Francis kick outs and one five-meter ejection with six by Rockett, while being ejected seven times. The Gaels turned the ball over 11 times. Iona scored six goals on 10 man-up chances, while the Terriers scored two goals on seven man-up opportunities.
With 1:22 gone in the opening period, Rockett's first goal put Iona on the board for a 1-0 edge. St. Francis answered 39 seconds later to tie the match at one each with 5:59 left. On the Gaels next possession, Naugle put Iona back up one 2-1, but St. Francis evened the score at two just five ticks later. Rockett's second goal followed by Stewart at the 1:32 mark put the Gaels up for good with a two-goal advantage going into the second period.
Hart's first score with 1:52 gone in the second quarter upped the Iona lead to three 5-2, but St. Francis sliced that edge back to two 5-3 only 20 seconds later. Van Reeken started a 5-0 Gaels run with goals from Gonzalez, Hart, van Reeken and Wydan for a seven-score 10-3 margin at halftime.
Neither squad scored in the third quarter until the Terriers cut the visitors edge to six 10-4 with 2:24 remaining. Brightenburg answered 1:04 later to put Iona back up seven 11-4 going into the final period.
The Terriers clawed back within six 11-5, but a minute later, Hernandez restored the Gaels six-goal cushion 12-6. After another St. Francis score, Tovar upped the Iona edge to eight 13-6 with 4:30 on the clock. Fuher's goal with 2:07 left sealed the Gaels 14-7 win despite a Terriers goal with 20 seconds remaining.
#23 Long Island 11 Iona 10
After managing only two first-half goals, the Gaels mounted a six-goal fourth quarter rally, but fell short of upsetting no. 23 Long Island this evening. Van Reeken led Iona with four goals, while Wydan had two. Naugle, Rockett, Brightenburg and Stewart scored ten goals on 30 shots with eight assists with three each by van Reeken and Wydan.
In goal, freshman Mary Jane Bailey made four saves on 14 Long Island shots, made two steals with seven goals against in the first and third quarters. Sophomore Lilly Morris had six saves on 10 Long Island shots and three steals with four goals against in the second and fourth quarters.
On defense, Iona made 12 steals with three by Hart and Gonzalez blocked one Sharks shot. Iona drew 13 Long Island kickouts with six by van Reeken and five by Rockett and two five-meter penalties, while being ejected five times. The Gaels turned the ball over 17 times. Iona scored three goals on 14 man-up chances, while the Sharks scored two goals on five man-up opportunities.
The Sharks scored on their first two possessions for a 2-0 edge with 50 seconds gone in the match. The hosts tacked on two more scores for 4-0 advantage with 2:35 remaining in the first period. With 22 seconds left, Stewart got Iona on the board to trim the LIU advantage back to three 4-1 going into the second period.
Long Island scored a five-meter penalty goal with 1:16 gone in the second period to go back up four 5-1. At the 2;25 mark, Naugle's goal got the Gaels within three 5-2. With 16 ticks on the clock, the Sharks scored for a 6-2 four-goal halftime lead.
The Sharks opened the third period with a goal for a 7-2 edge with 54 seconds gone. After another home goal with 2:45 left, van Reeken found the back of the net on a five-meter penalty shot to trim the Sharks lead to five 8-3 with 1:51 on the clock. LIU answered on its next chance, but Wydan's goal got the Gaels back with five 9-4 going into the final period.
Continuing a 3-0 Iona run, two straight Iona goals by Rockett and Wydan in the opening 55 seconds cut the home lead to three 9-6. Van Reeken's second score sliced the Sharks edge to two 9-7 on Iona's fourth unanswered goal with 2:59 left. Thirty-one ticks later, van Reeken hit a five-meter penalty shot for her third goal, but the Sharks did the same 10 seconds later – their first goal since 1:39 in the third period - to maintain a two-goal lead.
After Brightenburg narrowed the LIU edge back to one 10-9, the Sharks answered. Van Reeken recorded her fourth goal with 1:18 left as the Gaels trailed by one 11-10. Despite outscoring Long Island 6-2 in the final period, the Iona rally fell short.
UP NEXT
The Gaels travel to Siena College tomorrow to wrap up the regular season with a 3 p.m. match against the Saints.
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