EMMITSBURG, Md. (April 28, 2024) – Mount St. Mary's women's lacrosse used a flurry of offense and effective defensive stops to beat the Iona Gaels, 17-13, in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) quarterfinals. The win is the program's first postseason win in the new conference, and their sixth dating back to 2019.
Mackenzi Furlong had the most points with six and was one of three Mountaineers to record a hat trick in the game.
Anna Salerno finished with five goals, and
Madison Harmening had four goals along with six draw control wins.
MK Allingham delivered three assists, matching a game high with Furlong.
On defense,
Mackey Fick had four ground balls and was one of four members on the team with a caused turnover.
Ashlyn Watkins finished the game with nine saves. As a group, the unit did well to keep the Gaels at arms' length, despite the fact Iona took more shots than the Mount.
Mount St. Mary's now moves on to the MAAC Semifinals to face top-seeded Fairfield in Connecticut.
Iona scored the first two goals out of the gate before the Mount responded. Using woman-up opportunities, the visitors went ahead on two goals from Harmening with a third from Salerno. In the closing minutes of the first half with the game tied at five, Mount St. Mary's gained the upper hand.
Shannon McTavish broke the deadlock before Furlong finished off a free position. Salerno capped off a 3-0 run, allowing the Mount an 8-6 halftime advantage.
A 4-0 run late completing the third supplanted the Mountaineers in the drivers' seat for the rest of the contest.
Christina Haspert opened the scoring before Furlong and Harmening once again capitalized on a woman-up chance. The run extended to 5-0 on back-to-back Salerno scores. Up 17-11 with 6:05 left to play, staunch defense disavowed any comeback efforts by the Gaels, who only found the back of the net twice as the seconds ticked away.
The MAAC semifinal takes place on Friday, May 3. A game time has not yet been determined.
