The pure joy erupting from the Fairfield men’s soccer team was felt by all at Lessing Field as the players and coaches jumped up and down chanting, “Champions, champions, are we, are we, are we!” following the Stags’ 1-0 MAAC championship win over St. Peter’s on Sunday afternoon.
The team battled all season long to accomplish its goal of winning the MAAC championship, and the result of the hard work and effort was a moment the players said they will never forget.
The victory earned the Stags a first round date with UConn in the NCAA tournament at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
Fairfield senior captains Alex Cunliffe and Mike Troy have been key Stag players since their freshman year, both ranking in the top 10 on the school’s all-time scoring list.
Fittingly, in the title game, the two connected on the game-winning goal in what was the biggest moment of both of their college careers.
Cunliffe tapped the ball toward Troy off a free kick from Tom Clements ’09, and Troy put the ball on net.
The ball went past St. Peter’s’ goalkeeper Matthew Lawlor to give the Stags the lead. Troy took off down the sideline with his arms raised, as the fans and players screamed with pleasure.
“It was a lot of fun,” Troy said. “We needed that one goal and knew that once we got ahead, we could win it. Four years was a long time to wait to win a championship, but it really feels great.”
“This was a long time coming,” Cunliffe said of the championship. “But it is a fantastic result for the team, the school and everyone who has got behind us this season.”
Cunliffe was named tournament Most Valuable Player following the game. Head Coach Carl Rees was very happy with the selection of Cunliffe.
“He really earned it. On Thursday against Loyola, especially, he was the most influential player on the field,” Rees said. “It is very difficult to be the lone striker, and he was successful at doing so. He led the team in both games and deserves the MVP.”
Cunliffe felt that the path to the championship win began immediately following Fairfield’s loss to Marist last season in the championship game.
“That moment has been going through our mind the past few weeks, losing 2-1 on our home field against all of our fans,” he said. “We didn’t want it to happen again, and we all put the work into it to make sure it did not happen.”
Though Fairfield has advanced into the NCAA tournament, Cunliffe was quick to say that the work is far from over.
“We can enjoy today, but tomorrow it is back to business,” he said.
The Stags return to the tournament for the first time since 1999, where they will take on the Huskies.
UConn posted a 10-5-2 record this season and is coming off of a Big East tournament loss to St. John’s.
Cunliffe said that the Stags will enter the tournament looking to do more than just show up.
“We are not going to say that we are here to just make the first round; we are going to try and gain respect for ourselves, the school and go as deep as we can,” he said.
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