NEW ROCHELLE, NY — The Iona College lacrosse team fell on the road at Lehigh Saturday afternoon, 14-11. The Gaels failed to finish off a red-hot second half comeback effort in the loss. The Maroon & Gold are now 0-3 on the road, away from the friendly confines of Mazzella field.
Senior Mary Kate McCormick led the charge for the Gaels with four goals and one assist. Junior Katelyn Noschese recorded a hat trick, while fellow junior Erin Pugh and sophomore Jenna Tolzmann recorded two goals apiece. Freshman Christine Gironda was the main distributor for the Gaels with two assists, junior Grace Celona also recorded an assist.
The Gaels started the game strong, with McCormick scoring the first goal with just 53 seconds having run off the clock. The game would go back and forth for much of the first half, but Lehigh would break the standstill by going on a three goal run to secure a 7-4 advantage.
Iona would chip intp the deficit with two goals from Noschese and McCormick to combat the Mountain Hawks attck, however the home team continuted the offensive pressure. Lehigh closed out the opening period on a four-nothing run, giving them a 12-6 lead headnig into the locker room.
Iona was determined to put up a fight and take control of the game. The Maroon & Gold would go on a five-nothing run for a solid 10 plus minutes with goals with McCormick’s from Celona to bringing them to within two, 11-13.
Lehigh would then go on to hold longer possessions and stall the Gaels efforts. After nine minutes of passing, they notched one final goal with 25 seconds left to seal the game at 14-11.
The Mountain Hawks out shot the Gaels 28-20. They also took the edge in turnover margin, 8-13. Iona secured more draw controls 14-13 and saves 8-6.
The Maroon & Gold will take the week and prep for a trip up to Central Connecticut for a 1:00 pm showdown on Saturday, March 12.
