WEST LONG BRANCH, NJ— The Iona University men's soccer team battled back from an early deficit to earn a 1-1 tie against its former conference foe, Monmouth on Sunday night. The Hawks jumped out to an early lead at Hesse Field with a goal in the seventh minute, but the Gaels remained poised as junior Sergio Gonzalez Fernandez found the equalizer in the 79^th minute.
 
Gonzalez Fernandez scored his second goal of the season. Senior Jose Silva registered the assist on the game tying goal, his first of the season and second of his career. Freshman Fernando Schmelz made two saves in goal for the Maroon & Gold.

GAME SUMMARY

After controlling possession from the start, Monmouth broke through in the seventh minute as a cross from near the left side got deflected right to Erik Reis. He fired the left footed shot through traffic and into the back of the net for the early 1-0 lead.
 
Iona began to settle in as the team looked to level in the first half, out-shooting Monmouth 8-4 over the final 33 minutes of play. The first scoring chance came in the 14^th minute as sophomore Jad Benjelloun slipped a pass to graduate student Elird Mero on the left side. He rifled a shot from eight yards out to the left post, but Monmouth was there to knock it down.
 
The Gaels had another scoring look in the 38^th minute as senior Tim Timchenko booted a long pass from the Iona end near midfield. He found freshman Alvaro Maneiro deep in the Monmouth end on the left side. Maneiro fired a right footed cross to senior Thiago Cagna for a one-timer in the center of the box, but a Hawks defender was able to block the shot high off his shoulder to keep the Gaels off the scoreboard.
 
Out of the halftime break, Iona continued to carry possession in the Monmouth end with two shots by Cagna and sophomore Jaime Roman Jr. missing just off target. In the 61^st minute, Cagna found senior Ricardo Senen Pinillos running into the middle of the zone. He rifled a shot from 20-yards out that banked off the crossbar.
 
From there Monmouth looked to extend its lead with a few breakdowns in the Iona defense after all the forward pressure. The Hawks out-shot the Gaels 6-1 over a 10-minute stretch with just one shot on goal getting denied by Schmelz in the 63^rd minute.
 
Iona continued to push the ball well into the Monmouth zone, finally breaking through in the 79^th minute. Silva dribbled down the right-side and made a pass to Gonzalez Fernandez just inside the box. He gathered the ball and fired the ball through traffic and in off the right post to level the game 1-1.
 
Both teams missed the next shot attempt from each just out wide as the game reached the final 10 minutes. The Gaels had one final look on goal as Gonzalez Fernandez slipped a pass to a charging Maneiro inside the box with just under 3:30 left in the half. Monmouth made a diving stop at the ball to deny the open look as both teams would play to a draw for the first time in the 16 meetings between the two teams.
 
Monmouth now holds a 9-6-1 record all-time against the Gaels. The teams met nine times as Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference foes as the Hawks held a narrow 5-4 edge in the nine years both teams played as league foes.

TEAM STATS

• Both teams were even on shots for the game at 16-16. The Gaels however had an 8-3 margin for shots on goal. It was a season high for shots and shots on goal for the Gaels. Iona's defense limited Monmouth to just one shot on goal in the second half.
• Dymora made seven saves for the Hawks while Schmelz recorded a pair of saves.
• The two teams both attempted three corner kicks each, two in the first half and one in the second half.

UP NEXT

The Gaels head up to Massachusetts on Saturday, September 7 for a contest against Stonehill. Kick-off is set for 1:00 p.m. and will air on NEC Front Row.