Pioneers Fall Short at Home Against Iona, 1-0

Wednesday, October 15

Fairfield, Conn.

6:00 PM

Sacred Heart University Department of Athletics

8-6-1, 7-3-0

Iona

6-8-3, 4-4-2

Iona

Sacred Heart

Photo by: Jack Cavicchi

Pioneers Fall Short at Home Against Iona, 1-0

10/15/2025 9:35:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score

Bovardi and Kelleher combined for 11 shots

By: Joe Verrillo

FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Sacred Heart University women's soccer team narrowly fell to Iona, 1-0, on Wednesday night in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) play at Park Ave Field.

Records:
Sacred Heart (8-6-1, 7-3 MAAC)
Iona (6-8-3, 4-4-2 MAAC)

Top Performers:
Morgan Bovardi: 6 shots | 2 shots on goal
Shea Kelleher: 5 shots | 2 shots on goal

Between the Pipes:
Sacred Heart: Kyran Thievon: (W 8-5-1) 4 saves | 1 goal against
Iona: Kayla Kalbaugh: 9 saves | 0 goals against

How it Happened:

Iona came out of the gates firing, tallying four shots within the first 20 minutes of the game, compared to Sacred Heart's two. Sacred Heart controlled the remainder of the half, including a low strike from Rylee McGee in the 20th minute and a powerful effort from Morgan Bovardi that forced a diving save, minutes later. Despite the pressure, the game remained scoreless heading into halftime.
Early in the second half, Iona broke through after being awarded a penalty kick off a Sacred Heart handball, giving the Gaels a 1-0 lead.
Following the goal, the half grew physical. Three yellow cards were issued in the second half, one to Sacred Heart and two to Iona, adding to the intensity of the match.
Sacred Heart continued to push in hopes of finding the back of the net. The Pios recorded five second-half corner kicks and had several dangerous shots from Bovardi and Shea Kelleher, but Iona's goalkeeper stood tall to preserve the clean sheet.

Of Note:

Sacred Heart out shot Iona 17-9
Sacred Heart had five corner kicks compared to Iona's zero
This was a physical game, as there were three yellow cards along with 22 fouls in total

Up Next:
Sacred Heart continues MAAC play on Saturday, October 18, hosting Quinnipiac for Senior Day at 4:00 p.m. at Park Avenue Field.