Chalk yet another one up in the win column for the Stags. On Sunday afternoon at George Bisacca Court in Alumni Hall, the Stags extended their win streak to 12 in a row with a commanding victory over the Marist Red Foxes. After an intense first set in which Fairfield came out on top 28-26, the Stags found their rhythm and put together a complete performance in the next two frames winning 25-18 and 25-14.

As it was throughout the season, it was the trio of Megan Theiller ‘18, Skyler Day ‘18 and Megan O’Sullivan ‘17 that propelled the offense on the afternoon. They combined for 37 of the Stags’ 46 kills, continuously finding the weak spots in a Red Fox defense that was on their heels all afternoon.

The first set was a heated battle that saw seven ties during the frame. Although Fairfield never relinquished the lead, Marist hung around with a powerful offensive attack that posted 17 kills in the set. When the Stags were able to dig out of the Red Foxes’ spikes, they made the most of their opportunities on the offensive end as they tallied 15 kills on an impressive 31.4 hitting percentage.

Set number two looked as though Marist would carry over their confidence from the first set once they got off to a hot start in the game’s first few points. However, Fairfield’s poise soon prevailed as the Stags slowly but surely made their way back into the set, separating themselves from the Red Foxes in the later part of the frame to come away with a seven-point advantage in the end. Fairfield reversed the script on the attacking end, posting 15 kills while limiting Marist to only nine putaways.

Marist waived the white flag in the third set as the Stags established control right from the get-go and never looked back. Defense once again turned into offense with the Stags only allowing four Marist kills to their 16 putaways.

Again, it was a collective team effort that enabled the Stags to capture their 12th straight win of the year. From top to bottom, the team has one heartbeat and one incredible work ethic. For O’Sullivan, who is in her fourth season in the red and white, she has never seen anything quite like the way her team is clicking right now.

“It is honestly great. I am so proud of the team that I am on,” said the middle blocker who finished with 10 kills of her own. O’Sullivan added, “I could not ask for anything more. We are just continuing to fight and to work hard in practice, and I hope we go up from here.”

Fairfield is now 11-0 in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play and 18-5 overall, having not lost a game since Sept. 10 when they were ousted by Villanova. That being said, head coach Todd Kress is never content as he knows that the Stags still have a long way to go during the season.

“I am looking for us to keep working hard, to put blinders on and stay focused everyday,” Kress said.

By maintaining a simple, yet driven mindset, the Stags look balanced to repeat as MAAC Champions. Fairfield looks to stretch the streak to 13 on Saturday, Oct. 22 when they travel to Iona for a conference matchup against the Gaels.

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