On fire. On a roll. Hot. Whichever cliché you want to use, it rings true for Fairfield hockey as the team steamrolled Columbia 11-1 Friday night at the Wonderland of Ice, winning its 16th straight game and further stating what has now become obvious: opposing teams do not want to come to the Wonderland, nor do they want anything to do with the Stags.
“Everyone on the team has come together and meshed really well with
each other, we’re a very close knit group,” said Michael Chaconas ’06, “We all have the common goal of making nationals in Florida this year.”
Teammate Justin Eisner ’08 agreed, “I think lately it has been contributions from everyone not just the
top scorers,” he said.
“This is a great testament to how well the young third and fourth line forwards have played and how the defense has been larrgely involved in the closing games.”
Both Eisner and Chaconas are at the top of the team’s scoring chart. Eisner is on top with 65 points and Chaconas follows him with 54.
Currently, Fairfield finds itself second in their division behind Fordham with a game in hand. Just two points behind, Friday’s game at Fordham has major implications with the winner taking over first place in the division.
“We are certainly looking for a big win against Fordham on Friday, which figres to be the only tough contest for us in the final stretch,” Eisner said.
With three games remaining before the playoffs, the Stags are fourth in the conference and all but guarenteed a playoff spot. But if they beat Fordham, they have a chance to finish first in the conference and guarentee home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs.
“We need to fine-tune some things and make sure no one gets hurt,” said Chaconas. “If we play the way we’ve been playing all season in the playoffs, we shouldn’t have a problem winning the whole thing.”
Bend it like Billy
Fairfield soccer standout Bill Androutsos ’06 was chosen chosen with the 24th overall pick in the United Soccer League draft by the Montreal Impact.
Androutsos, who led the Stags in scoring last year with 28 points, was a fixture in the Stags’ lineup for four years after coming to Fairfield from Toronto.
He narrowly missed leading the Stags to the NCAA tournament when the team was upset by Marist in the MAAC finals
But his personal accomplishments led the way for one of the most successful seasons in team history.
They went 13-4-3 record, won the MAAC regular season title, and had a chance to play for a trip to the NCAA’s on their home field before the Red Foxes ended their season. They still had a chance to make the tournament as an at-large bid, but the tournament selection committee denied them that chance.
“We are pleased with our picks,” Impact Head Coach Nick De Santis said in a pres release. “We had our eye on both players [we chose.] Androutsos is a big player with a more defensive style.”
Leave a Reply