LOUDONVILLE, N.Y. – Gabriella Cuevas scored twice in the first half and Rachelle Ross tacked on a late insurance goal to lift the Monmouth University women to a 3-1 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference victory over Siena College Saturday afternoon.
The Hawks, who are unbeaten in 12 road matches, secured a top-three finish in the MAAC standings and will open the MAAC Tournament with a quarterfinal match on Sunday, Oct. 29 in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Siena fell to 9-7-0 overall and 5-4-0 in the conference.
Cuevas gave Monmouth (10-3-2, 7-1-0) the lead when she pounced on a corner kick inside the penalty area in the 14th minute. Nearly 10 minutes later, Cuevas scored a similar goal, this time on a Sarina Jones service, as she was positioned on the far post for the set piece.
Monmouth’s two-goal lead was short-lived, however, as Siena’s Michele Tremblay cut the deficit in half in the 28th minute. The score held at 2-1 before Ross scored on a breakaway with less than two minutes remaining in regulation time.
“We had a terrific first half and we were unlucky the score line was the way it was at halftime,” Monmouth head coach Krissy Turner said. “The second half was more of a gut-it-out performance. Overall, we are satisfied with earning three points on the road in a critical game for us.”
The Hawks will host Fairfield University in their home finale at Hesse Field on The Great Lawn Wednesday at 7 p.m.