Spiking the MAAC

The Stags steamrolled the St. Peter’s Peahens en route to their 10th win of the season and their seventh in the MAAC on Saturday, Oct. 6.

The Stags won their first set 30-20 and didn’t look back on their way towards their sixth straight shutout this season.

“I thought we played well against St. Peter’s,” said Head Coach Jeff Werneke. “We executed well and showed a lot of enthusiasm at home.”

The Stags continued to build momentum and increase their lead on the Peahens as they won their next two sets 30 to 18 and 30 to 14, respectively.

It was a complete team effort with two players, senior Kelly Oliver and sophomore Barbie Thistle, recording double-doubles along with four other teammates reaching double figures in team assists.

It was a game of milestones for several members of the squad. Oliver’s 16 kills brought her career total to a mammoth 996, leaving her just four kills away from becoming just the ninth Stag to reach 1,000.

Senior Lindsey Lee’s eight digs brought her up to second all-time on the career digs list, as she passed former Stag Jen Mclaughlin. Lee’s digs brought her up to a total of 1,448.

With 10 games left and Lee’s uncanny ability for getting digs, she is poised to take over the all-time digs record set at 1,612 by Lauren Laramore in 2005.

As the Stags cruised to their 3-0 victory over the Peahens, Werneke reached a milestone of his own in notching his 100th victory as Fairfield’s volleyball coach.

“I didn’t even know until we were on the way to Loyola when a couple of the players told me,” Werneke said. “It feels nice, but it is not something I focus on.”

“We take it one match at a time, but it is a nice accomplishment for the program that we have had that success,” added Werneke.

This adds another magnificent accomplishment to Werneke’s stellar season and career as he surpassed previous volleyball coach Todd Kress to establish himself as Fairfield’s all-time winningest coach.

The Stags dominated St. Peter’s on the court and on paper as they accumulated 56 kills on the day as well as posting an impressive .318 attack percentage.

These numbers dwarfed the Peahens’ .045 attacking percentage and 25 kills. The Peahens were constantly on their toes as they found themselves conquered by the Stags’ 9-2 service as ace advantage.

The Stags also controlled the net with their 7 to 3.5 block advantage.

Fairfield faced Loyola in Baltimore on Sunday and picked up its eighth MAAC win with a 3-2 victory.

It was the first time in Werneke’s coaching career that the Stags won a five-game match, giving them something to build on heading into the rest of the MAAC season.

In the game Oliver became the third player on the current team and the ninth Stag in University history to record 1,000 career kills, with four in the game.

“At Loyola it was a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde type of game, one game we would play up to our abilities, then the next we would not execute well,” said Werneke. “It was a tight game and we came back to win. It was good to see us pull it off.”

The Stags take on non-MAAC foe Hofstra on Wed., Oct. 10 and close out the season with nine MAAC showdowns.

The Stags (8-1 MAAC), currently sitting in second place, have a crucial showdown with first-place Siena (8-0 MAAC) on Oct. 27 in the friendly confines of Alumni Hall.

They also have two important games against third-place Iona (6-2 MAAC) to maintain their dominance in the MAAC.

The Stags should feel confident in their ability to take back control of the MAAC as they have been building momentum and as of late with a seven-game winning streak and 10 wins in their past 11 games.