The Iona women’s basketball team won their second ever Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference title after beating Manhattan College 73-60 in Atlantic City, New Jersey at Boardwalk Hall on March 11.  

The team won their first ever MAAC title in 2016 and both MAAC tournament wins and NCAA appearances have been under current head coach Billi Chambers.  

Iona was the favorites going into the MAAC tournament after they clinched the number one overall seed finishing with an overall record of 26-7 and 18-2 in conference play.
 

After receiving a bye in the first round of the MAAC tournament, the Gaels beat Mount Saint Mary’s 39-37 in the quarterfinals after Iona trailed with less than two minutes on the clock in the fourth quarter. Juana Camilion put Iona ahead with a jumper and 24 seconds left on the clock, before Thoranna Hodge-Carr clinched the win with three seconds left in the contest, scoring one out of two free-throws.
 

Another close affair saw the Gaels advance from the semi-final round with a 67-66 victory over Siena College. Iona took the lead in the match  with three minutes and 34 seconds left in the fourth quarter through a three-point field-goal by Natalia Otkhmezuri and held on to advance to the championship game.
 

The final turned out to be a comfortable win for the Gaels. After taking a 25-23 lead with two minutes and 27 seconds left in the second quarter, Iona never lost the lead again, leading by as many as 20 points and taking home the MAAC tournament trophy.  

The women’s victory set up a double MAAC championship for the Gaels as the men’s basketball team came back later that day to win their sixth MAAC tournament in the last eight.  

The Gaels had three players named to the All-Championship team with Ketsia Athias, Kate Mager and Juana Camilion all being tabbed. Camilion was also named the tournament Most Valuable Player.  

The same three Gaels were also selected to the All-MAAC regular season teams. Camilion was named to the All-MAAC first team and Athias and Mager were named to the All-MAAC second team.
 

Camilion swept the season awards as she was also named the MAAC regular season player of the year and MAAC defensive player of the year.
 

Head coach Billi Chambers was unanimously named as the MAAC coach of the year after the Gaels lost just two matches in conference play. 

In addition to the team’s success on the court, off the court, the Gaels named six players to the All-Academic team. Juana Camilion, Judith Gomez, Thoranna Hodge-Carr, Isabelle Lipinski, Kate Mager and Addy Salzer were all tabbed for the award.  

Iona lost in the opening round of the NCAA tournament to the number three-seeded Duke University in a 49-89 defeat.