NEW ROCHELLE, NY – It was a roller coaster ride Wednesday afternoon at Mazzella Field. Iona found itself down twice in the game, but a pair of dramatic second half goals from sophomore Marissa Dundasand freshman Amber Crispin carried the Gaels into overtime, where they earned a 3-3 draw against Marist.
The first scoring chance of the game came in the 23rdminute on a penalty kick opportunity for the Red Foxes. Marist’s leading goal-scorer, junior Camille Bowen, stepped up to the dot and looked to get her team on the board first. She attempted a shot towards the lower right corner, but junior Tiffany Martinez was able to react quick enough and halt the attempt.
The Maroon & Gold rang the bell first in the 36thminute. Freshman Tamara McCarthy took a short pass from Crispin at the top of the 18-yard box and buried a line drive shot just inside the right post. It was her first career collegiate goal.
The Red Foxes took control of the offensive end in the opening portions of the second half. Bowen was able to score her tenth of the season and tie the game in the 59th minute. She took a long pass from senior Ashlee Burke and deked a shot past Martinez who attempted to intercept the connection.
Marist tallied their second of the game ten minutes later, once again using a lengthy pass to its advantage. Freshman Keri Bradley took on a pair of Iona defensemen and knocked home a strike to give the Red Foxes a 2-1 lead. Senior Juliette Loccisano and Burke combined on the assists.
Rather than keep their heads down, the Gaels answered back just moments later. Sophomore Mariana Jaramillo took control of the ball just outside the box and slid it over to the cutting Dundas on the left side. The junior defenseman tucked it in far post in the 71stminute to tie the game at two.
The chaos of offensive explosion continued in the 73rdminute. In one of their four second half corner kicks, Marist battled through the bodies in the box to give itself a boatload of momentum and a 3-2 lead. Freshman Bianca Furci took a deflection off a Gael player and scored her first of the season.
As the clock wound down, Iona applied pressure in an attempt to tie the game. The persistence finally paid off with just ten tics left on the clock. Junior Christine Rebus took control of the ball in the defensive end and brought it toward midfield. She lobbed a pass into the offensive zone toward Crispin, who was camped at the top of the 18-yard box. After the ball deflected off a Marist player, Crispin took one dribble and chipped in the game-tying score at 89:50.
The overtime periods were filled with constant back-and-forth action. Crispin tried to add onto her heroics with two rising shots in the first OT period. Martinez came up with a huge save in the second overtime, deflecting a breakaway chance by Marist’s Bradley.
The Red Foxes outshot Iona (28-17) and had an edge in shots on goal (15-9). Martinez made 12 saves in net for the Gaels.
The Maroon & Gold continue their MAAC schedule on Wednesday, Oct. 12 with a trip to Hamden, CT to take on the Quinnipiac Bobcats.
