Swimming and Diving
Making a splash: Prior to the MAAC Championships last week, swimming and diving head coach David Farley made a bold assertion.
‘This season has gone as any well as any I’ve had here at Fairfield,’ Farley said. ‘I think we have a really good chance to see a few kids to be in that top echelon.’
Farley’s words, it seems, were prophetic, as the Stags made the Mangione Aquatic Center at Loyola (Md.) their personal stage to demonstrate the team’s progress and show off their fantastic freshman.
Despite somewhat mediocre team finishes – the women’s team finished fifth overall, while the men claimed the seventh overall slot – the Stags turned heads with unbelievable individual efforts. Collectively,’ Fairfield swimming ‘amp; diving set 23 program records at the three-day event.
Heading the effort was freshman standout Michelle Yoshida, who not only won the 50m, 100m and 200m freestyle events, but also set program and conference records in the process. In all, Yoshida was a part of six program records during the Championships – three of which came in the freestyle events. In total, Yoshida set eleven program marks this season.
Her teammate, freshman Lauren Kennedy, finished third in the 200 breaststroke and also set a new program record.
Following a brief respite, the Stags’ head to Boston, Mass. for the ECAC Championships, which begin on Feb. 27.
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Softball
Stags and the Sunshine State: It has been 139 days since softball’s last fall exhibition game. That streak will end this weekend, as the Stags officially begin their 2009 season with the Florida Gulf Coast Tournament in Fort Myers, Fla., which begins this coming Friday afternoon.’
The Stags will play double-headers on Feb. 20 and 21, including a Saturday afternoon matchup against Michigan State. Following a Monday game against DePaul to conclude the tournament, the Stags travel to Orlando to participate in the Rebel Games, which begin on March 1. Lehigh, Holy Cross, Valparaiso, St. Francis and St. Bonaventure are among the teams competing in the tournament.
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Male Stag-lete of the Week:
ATHLETE: Herbie Allen ’09
SPORT: Men’s Basketball
ACHIEVEMENT: It probably wasn’t the Senior Night he imagined, just like this season has deviated far from the original plan. Allen, however, made the best of a 83-76 loss to Niagara on Saturday night, totaling a career-high 24 points and pacing the Stags to a near-upset of the Purple Eagles, who rank second in the current MAAC standings and lead the nation in road wins. Allen, the lone senior honored prior to the game, played all 40 minutes of the contest.
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Female Stag-lete of the Week
ATHLETE: Michelle Yoshida ’12
SPORT: Women’s Swimming and Diving
ACHIEVEMENT: Three days, three events, three records for the freshman wunderkind from Kaneohe, Hawaii, who starred at’ the MAAC Championships at Loyola (Md.) in Baltimore, Md. this past weekend. Yoshida not only won three MAAC titles, but also set three MAAC individual records, becoming the first Stag in program history to win three events at a MAAC Championship. Yoshida took home first-place honors in the three freestyle events (50-meter, 100m, 200m).
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He Said It…
‘Fairfield has traditionally been strong defensively, and I see no reason why this year should be any different.” ‘ ‘ ‘ – Men’s Lacrosse head coach Andy Copelan on the importance of defenders Matt Petre and Billy Honovich, both senior captains and four-year starters.
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Game of the Week
Men’s Lacrosse vs. Delaware
Saturday, Feb. 21, 1p.m.
Andy Copelan, 27, makes his head coaching debut against Delaware, a member of the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) and the first of the Stags’ six out-of-conference opponents. Two seasons ago, the Fightin’ Blue Hens not only captured the CAA Championship, but also reached the semifinals of the NCAA tournament. The Stags are looking for their seventh consecutive season-opening win.
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