LEXINGTON, VA – The Iona College women’s water polo continued Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference action Saturday afternoon, where they conquered matches with Villanova (14-9) and Siena (12-8). The Gaels are currently 4-0 in MAAC play.
Freshman Kayla Allen started the game with the first goal on a power play in the opening two minutes of the match. At the bottom of the first period junior Dana Andrea provided two assists on goals made by junior Rebecca Mathews and freshman Hannah Schultz. The Gaels took four goals in the second period with two coming from junior Meghan Mahoney and one each from Allen and sophomore Rebecca Koshy. In the third period, Andrea pulled two goals, with Schultz and Allen scoring one each, all unassisted. The Gaels had three unanswered goals in the last period, coming from Schultz, Mathews, and junior goalie Dana Delucchi, who took the win for Iona with one save.
Schultz recorded a career high seven goals in the Siena match-up, with two unanswered in the first period. Neary scored three goals, all unassisted. Junior Sara Bortz and Koshy eached pulled a goal in the winning game. Delucchi recorded the victory in net with five saves.
“I’m happy for our young team. It’s a nice streak that we’re on,” coach Brian Kelly commented, “especially since we are not even close to playing our best polo. We have so much to improve upon and we still play poorly in many spots. It’s nice to get “W’s” while you’re not playing your best. That’s a sign of a good team to come.”
The Gaels continue playing conference matches through the weekend with a game starting tomorrow, at 9:00 am, against Wagner, followed by a 2:30 pm contest with Marist.