Sunday marked yet another successful day for the Norma Pfriem Breast Cancer Center and the Fairfield University Volleyball team. The match between Fairfield and the visiting Iona Gaels was their annual Herd for a Cure match where donations were raised and pink t-shirts were sold.
These types of special contests mean the world to head coach Todd Kress, as he lost his mother to breast cancer a year and a half ago. “The girls understand the importance of it and I think it’s great that we’re doing [cancer awareness events] on the national scene now. So many programs are participating,” said Kress.
As mentioned, the Stags performed outstanding on the court. They swept Iona 3-0, upping their conference record to 11-0 on the season. It was the Stags’ 38th consecutive Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference regular season victory – a streak that has been intact for two years. While the streak is quite impressive, Kress noted that the team tries not to put any added pressure on themselves because of it. “The streak is obviously there. Our pressure is to continue to push outside the box and get better every day in practice,” he said.
The Stags were led offensively by the steady duo of Skyler Day ‘18 and Megan Theiller ‘18. Each had double digit kills, 18 and 12, effortlessly seeming to place their returning shots anywhere on Iona’s side of the net. First-year Kaylie Butts and Luci Albertson ‘21 recorded five kills apiece, while Kaitlyn Fisher ‘19 and Mayda Garcia ‘20 had three each, respectively. Junior Manuela Nicolini dished out 39 assists on the day to go along with her two kills. An incredible .398 team hitting percentage showcased yet another one of Fairfield’s magnificent offensive performances on the season.
Fairfield was steady on the defensive end too. Junior Taylor Rudeen was the backbone of the Stags defensive effort, coming up with 19 digs. Day and Theiller helped out defensively with nine and seven digs. Sophomore Sonja Radulovic made her presence felt with six digs from the back row. Up close to the net, Fairfield was blocking Iona returns left and right. As a team they had eight blocks and held Iona to a dismal .150 hitting percentage.
A matchup with in-state rival Quinnipiac is next up for the Stags on Friday, Oct. 27 at 7 p.m. as they travel to Hamden to take on the Bobcats. Quinnipiac is currently 7-19 overall and 6-7 in the MAAC. The Stags look to continue their winning ways.
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