LOUDONVILLE, NY – MAAC Regular Season Champion Siena Women's Soccer looks to secure the program's third Tournament title when the top-seeded Saints host four-time defending Tournament Champion and No. 3 seed Monmouth in the MAAC Championship Match Friday. Kickoff from Hickey Field is set for 3 p.m. with the match set to be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
A.J. Kanell and Isis Young have the call of the match on ESPN+. The broadcast is available by clicking the corresponding link, on smartphones and tablets via the ESPN app, and on televisions through Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox360, and Xbox One.
 
The 2020-21 MAAC Tournament Champion will receive the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Women's Soccer Championships set to begin Apr. 27 in North Carolina. The NCAA Tournament Selection Show revealing this season's 48-team field will air online at NCAA.com Monday at 1 p.m.
 
Siena in the MAAC Championships (20^th Appearance)
Record: 14-15-2 (.484)
Championships: 2 (2010, 2015)
Home: 3-0-1
Championship: 2-3
As No. 1 seed: 2-0
Vs. No. 3 seed: 2-2
Vs. Monmouth: 1-2
 
Siena is in the midst of the program's milestone 20^th MAAC Tournament appearance, and is in search of the program's third title. The Saints have captured the program's first two MAAC Tournament Championships over the past decade, and in five-year increments, winning as the No. 3 seed in 2010, before making history as the first – and only – No. 6 seed to claim their second title in 2015.
 
Siena is making the program's third MAAC Championship Match appearance in six seasons and sixth overall (1996, 2006, 2010, 2015, 2018, 2020-21), which is tied with today's opponent Monmouth for third most in conference history. Only former MAAC powerhouse Loyola (18) and Fairfield (11) have played in more MAAC Championship matches. Additionally, the Saints (two) and Hawks (five) are the only other two programs in addition to Loyola (10) and Fairfield (seven) to have won multiple MAAC crowns. Today marks the first time that Siena is playing in the MAAC Championship Match on home turf.
 
Today's matchup pits the two programs who have won the past five MAAC Tournament Championships. Monmouth has won four straight following the Saints' second and most recent title in 2015. The winning team in each of the past five MAAC Championship matches has scored at least five goals in their victories.
 
Siena is 14-15-2 all-time in MAAC Tournament matches, punctuated by an impressive recent run. Starting with the program's 2010 Cinderella season – and including Monday's 2-1 semifinal result vs. Rider – the Saints have now achieved a stellar 12-5 MAAC Tournament record over the past decade. Siena's 12 wins over that period are twice as many as their next closest challenger Rider (six), and trail only Monmouth (14), and the Green and Gold have now won at least one MAAC Tournament match in five of their past seven appearances. Prior to 2010, the Saints were just 2-10-2 spanning the program's first 12 MAAC Tournament appearances in their first 18 seasons in the conference.
 
Siena is making the program's seventh MAAC Tournament appearance in the past eight seasons. The Saints had qualified for six straight MAAC Tournaments, before falling short in the program's most recent 2019 campaign.
 
Siena is the No. 1 seed in the MAAC Tournament for the first time after capturing the program's first MAAC Regular Season Championship this spring, coming in their 29^th season of conference competition.
 
The Saints are set to play just the program's fifth-ever MAAC Tournament home match, and fourth on Hickey Field, with three of those contests taking place this season. Prior to this past week's victories over No. 4 Rider in the semifinals (2-1) and No. 8 Iona in the quarterfinals (3-0), third-seeded Siena battled No. 2 Fairfield to a scoreless draw at this facility before falling 5-4 in a penalty kick shootout in the 2008 MAAC Semifinals. No. 3 Siena defeated sixth-seeded Quinnipiac 2-1 in overtime in the 2018 MAAC Semifinals at their predominant home on the adjacent grass field.
 
The Series With Monmouth (12^th Meeting: Monmouth leads, 9-1-1)
Siena and Monmouth meet for just the 12^th time, with all matchups having taken place since the Hawks joined the MAAC in 2013. Monmouth has controlled the all-time series 9-1-1, outscoring the Saints by a 27-9 margin.
 
The teams played to a 1-1 draw in the regular season meeting just 12 days ago here in Loudonville, despite the Hawks holding a 28-7 advantage in shots and a 12-2 margin in corners. Jesi Rossman scored in the eighth minute for Monmouth, with Emily McNelis netting the equalizer for Siena in the 36^th minute. Leslie Adams made a season-high 11 saves for the Saints who earned just the program's second positive result in 11 all-time meetings vs. the Hawks.
 
Siena and Monmouth meet for the fourth time in the MAAC Tournament, spanning the past six seasons. The sixth-seeded Saints upset the top-seeded Hawks 2-1 in the 2015 MAAC Semifinals on Monmouth's home field, en route to Siena capturing the program's second and most recent title. The top-seeded Hawks prevailed 3-1 over the fourth-seeded Saints in the 2017 MAAC Semifinals in Florida. The programs are meeting in the MAAC Championship Match for the second time in three seasons, as Siena looks to avenge its 2018 loss on the Jersey Shore. Top-seeded Monmouth won its third of four straight titles with a 7-1 triumph over the third-seeded Saints in West Long Branch.
 
Scouting Siena (6-0-1)
Siena advanced to the program's third MAAC Championship Match in six seasons with victories over Rider (2-1 in the semifinals) and Iona (3-0 in the quarterfinals) on Hickey Field. Jayanna Monds has accounted for two of the Saints' five postseason goals, with Annie Bagnall, Katrina Kurtz, and Carrie Krohn notching the other tallies.
 
The Saints entered this season's unique postseason riding high after capturing the program's first-ever MAAC Regular Season Championship. Prior to this spring, the Saints had never before finished higher than second in the regular season standings (2004, 2009, 2016) since joining the MAAC for women's soccer in 1992. The regular season championship was quite an accomplishment for the Green and Gold after being predicted to finish eighth according to the MAAC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
 
Siena went undefeated in five matches spanning a 10-day regular season sprint to the title. After initially having the league bye on Mar. 9, the Saints then endured a COVID-related pause before finally opening their long-awaited season on Mar. 25 vs. Iona. The season-opener marked the first match in 512 days for Siena.
 
The Saints have outscored their opponents by a whopping 18-3 margin spanning their seven matches this spring, while posting four clean sheets defensively. Siena enters Friday's MAAC Championship Match ranking third nationally in assists per match (3.29), seventh in both points per match (8.43) and save percentage (.917), 11^th in scoring offense (2.57), and 17^th in goals against average (0.42).
 
The Saints boasted both the MAAC's Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week on Mar. 30 and Apr. 6. Krohn and McNelis secured offensive honors, while Adams nabbed defensive acclaim both weeks. McNelis, who has accounted for both Siena goals in the program's last three matches vs. Monmouth dating back to the 2018 MAAC Championship Match, paces a balanced offensive attack with 10 points. Krohn and Monds add eight points apiece, with Rachel Sullivan chipping in seven. The Saints' six game-winning goals have come from six different players. The junior Adams, who made her collegiate debut just this spring, currently ranks 12^th nationally in save percentage (.903) while holding a stellar 0.57 goals against average. Senior captain and center back Deanna Lomino has dished out a team-high five assists, ranking 14^th nationally in assists per match (0.71).
 
The Saints are led by the steady hand of Steve Karbowski. Now in his 22^nd season at the helm at his alma mater, the native of nearby Clifton Park, New York is the winningest coach in program history with 194 victories to date. Karbowski, who has led Siena to the program's first two MAAC Tournament Championships (2010, 2015), became the first head coach in league history to eclipse 100 career MAAC Regular Season victories in 2019. Including both regular and postseason action, Karbowski is the conference's all-time leader with 118 MAAC wins to his name. His counterpart in the championship match, Dr. Krissy Turner, is tied with former Fairfield coach Jim O'Brien for third all-time with 75 total victories.
 
Scouting Monmouth (5-1-2)
Perennial MAAC powerhouse and four-time defending Tournament Champion Monmouth makes its sixth MAAC Championship Match appearance in eight seasons.
 
The Hawks have dominated the conference since joining in 2013, winning five Tournament titles in their first seven seasons of league competition. Monmouth, which has posted a 66-6-5 (.890) all-time MAAC Regular Season record, captured the regular season title in each of the program's first seven seasons prior to the Saints snapping their streak this spring. The Hawks had won 21 straight MAAC Regular Season matches prior to their loss Mar. 27 at Quinnipiac.
 
Monmouth has won 11 consecutive MAAC Tournament matches, while outscoring its opponents 40-6. The Hawks have not lost in the MAAC Tournament since their 2015 semifinal defeat vs. Siena, and have not allowed a goal spanning the past 377:22 dating back to McNelis' 2018 championship tally. Including postseason play, Monmouth has boasted an 80-8-5 (.887) all-time MAAC record since joining the conference eight seasons ago.