NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y.- Monmouth University (11-5, 6-3 MAAC) scored five unanswered goals over a 15 minute span to take the lead from Iona (7-10, 2-6 MAAC), one it would not relinquish as the Hawks won their final regular season game 8-7.
“I thought we did a nice job coming back at the end of the first half to tie it up and give us momentum going into the second half,” said sixth year head coach Denise Wescott. “It is always good to win heading into championships. Our defense did a really nice job keeping their playmaker away from the ball. Offensively we had some quick looks, we moved the ball well and found players in the middle. I thought both goalies had some really good saves. ”
Monmouth earns the third seed in the upcoming Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament and will host sixth-seeded Niagara on Saturday.
Trailing by a pair of goals late in the first half, Monmouth scored five consecutive times to take an 8-5 lead with 14 minutes left in the game. Iona charged back, cutting the deficit to two with 11 minutes left but was unable to get another goal until there was only 16 seconds of game left. Up by one, Monmouth senior Allison Stathius (Delran, N.J./Delran) won the ensuing draw and was able to run out the clock for Monmouth's 11 win of the year.
Offensively, Monmouth was led by sophomore Claudia LaMarca (West Long Branch, N.J./Shore Regional) who had a trio of goals while Stathius had a pair of goals and an assist. Stathius also had two caused turnovers and four draw controls while junior Marial Pierce (Middleburg, Va./St. John's Catholic Prep) had a goal and an assist in the game. Goalie Katie Donohoe (Peterborough, Ontario/Holy Cross Catholic Secondary) had eight saves and five ground balls in the win.
Iona jumped out to a 1-0 lead early but the Hawks registered back to back goals over a three minute span to take a 2-1 lead over the Gaels with 21 minutes left in the frame. Iona retook the lead on consecutive goals from Erin Pugh and Meghan Testoni but Stathius netted her first goal of the game just 17 seconds later to even the score up at 3-3. The Gaels rallied for a pair of goals to take a 5-3 lead before Monmouth tallied a pair of scores in the final 22 seconds of the half to send it tied into the break at five apiece.
The Gaels were led by Pugh who had three goals while Anna Kelly finished with two goals. Blair Nathanson had nine saves between the pipes for Iona. Monmouth outshot Iona 24-18 and won 10 of the 16 draw controls in the defensive contest.
The Hawks will host the opening round of the 2015 conference tournament on Saturday at 11 a.m. on ESPN3.
