Box Score
Box Score
RIVERDALE, N.Y. - Aislinn McIlvenny tallied a hat trick and Alex Iovine scored once and assisted three other goals as Manhattan routed Saint Peter's 7-2 at Gaelic Park on Wednesday evening.
Iovine, who has been a force on the field since returning from an injury earlier this month, scored just 22 seconds into the match to put the Jaspers on top, 1-0. Erica Modena crossed the ball to Iovine on the right side of the box. Iovine then curled one into the bottom left corner of the goal for one of the quickest tallies in program history.
Saint Peter's evened the score at the 14-minute mark. Maggie Neiswanger and Emily Fenice connected on a two on one breakaway with Fenice finishing down the middle of the field to knot the score at 1-1.
The match remained 1-1 heading into halftime. Nine minutes into the second half, Iovine ripped a shot from deep that clanged off the crossbar. McIlvenny was there to head the ball into the back of the net to put Manhattan ahead, 2-1.
Three minutes later, McIlvenny struck again. She scored after another header, connecting on a beautiful deep cross by Kaelyn Angelo to make it 3-1 Manhattan. In the 64th minute, Lizzy Carlson scored her second goal of the season, a rocket from 25 yards out after Martine Diamond found her in space.
With the Jaspers leading 4-1, McIlvenny finished her second half hat trick. Again, she connceted with Iovine, who planted a perfect cross in the box and McIlvenny fired it home from point blank range to give Manhattan a 5-1 advantage.
After Neiswanger scored with 21 minutes remaining to cut the Jaspers' lead to 5-2, Manhattan's Daniella Morgante scored her first career goal, on another assist from Iovine to make it a 6-2 game.
With 23 seconds left, Emily Ude capped the scoring with a brilliant run down the right side and a rocket from 25 yards out that tucked under the crossbar and into the upper corner of the goal. That made it 7-2 and matched the Jaspers' highest scoring output in more than seven years.
"We had an energy and an attitude [in the second half]," head coach Brendan Lawler said after the match. "Aislinn is one of the best forwards in the conference. When she runs through a ball and is tenacious, it's going to lead to goals."
Maria Sanzari was solid in goal for the Jaspers, making four saves for her second win of the season. Kelsey Roberts made four stops and allowed four goals for Saint Peter's and was relieved by Molly O'Halloran, who had one save and yielded three goals in the final 26:56.
"Things are coming together for us and we're moving up the table," Lawler said about the end of the regular season. "It's about positioning for us right now."
The Jaspers will take on Rider at Gaelic Park on Saturday, October 19 at 1 p.m.
NOTES:
Manhattan last scored seven goals in a MAAC match on September 17, 1992 in a 7-1 win over Saint Peter's ... the Jaspers have won the last 16 matches against the Peacocks ... Manhattan last scored seven goals on October 11, 2006 in a 7-0 blanking of Delaware State ... the Jaspers had two shots hit the post in the first half ... Saint Peter's had one hit the crossbar in the second half ... McIlvenny now has a team-high six goals ... Manhattan improved to 4-2-1 at Gaelic Park this season ... Manhattan outshot Saint Peter's 24-9 ... the Jaspers improved to 2-4-1 in the MAAC and are tied for seventh place in the conference with three games remaining ... all 11 teams will play in the upcoming MAAC Tournament at Walt Disney World in Florida.
