THE Rundown

The visitors came out of the gate firing, scoring twice within the first couple of minutes. Maroon & Gold backstop Denny Piekutowski saved five shots in the stanza, but with another Pioneers goal before the end of the quarter the Gaels exited the first down 3-0. 

Despite Iona forcing Sacred Heart to spit up nine turnovers in the second period, the Pioneers still went on to triple their lead, the Gaels heading into the locker room down 9-0.  

Out of the half, the visitors put two more on the scoreboard before Iona attackman Cullen Lawry took advantage of a man-up opportunity, rocketing the ball home off a Kyle Hardie assist. The third would end with Iona tallying five shots on target and only allowing a pair of goals, remaining behind by a score of 11-1 at the end of the third.  

Piekutowski remained resilient in net, tallying seven saves in the final quarter, but the Gaels would allow another five before the final buzzer, the game finishing 16-1 in favor of Sacred Heart. 

IONA PERFORMERS

• Denny Piekutowski totaled 15 saves, facing a season-high 56 shots during the match. The Iona goalkeeper tallied four ground balls and has now tallied double digits saves in each of the past five games.  
• Tochi Agwamba co-led all players on the field with a career-high four caused turnovers in the Iona defense. The Laurel, Maryland native also scooped up one ground ball. 
• Gary Shivell tied Agwamba with a game and career-high four ground balls, causing a pair of turnovers and firing off one shot.  
• Cullen Lawry scored the lone goal for the Gaels, taking five shots and picking up one ground ball. 
• Kyle Hardie finished with one assist, two shots, and a ground ball. 

THE OPPONENT

• Michael Moreschi led all players with six points on a four-goal, two-assist afternoon.
• Tucker Spencer ended the game with five goals, landing seven of nine shots on goal. 

Up Next

The Gaels hit the road to square off with Quinnipiac at 3:00 p.m. on March 29.