The Yale Invitational seemed to halt a push for momentum among the Fairfield University Volleyball team, as the incumbent Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champions only won four of 13 sets played over the weekend. Looking to regain their footing after three straight losses, the Stags had highlights that reminded spectators of their championship season but ultimately fell short in all three games played.
Game One: Fairfield vs Colgate
Game one against Colgate was led offensively by right side Mamie Krubally ‘27 who had eight kills. Outside hitter Allie Elliot ‘26 and middle blocker Maya Walker ‘26 had seven and six, respectively. Starting hot, the Stags won the first set with 13 kills from 37 attempts but were ultimately outpaced for the remaining sets, as they failed to hit above .200 for the rest of the afternoon matchup.
At the net, the Stags managed to tally six blocks. Middle blocker Emma Beretich ‘27 shut down Colgate three times when blocking, one of which was solo. Elliot, who assisted in a block, also had a service ace to go along with 8.5 points.
Action in the back of the court consisted of a team-leading eight-dig performance from defensive specialist Kyla Berg ‘24. Outside hitter Mikayla Haut ‘25, setter Abby Jandaro ‘26 and setter Blakely Montgomery ‘25 each had seven digs apiece.
Game Two: Fairfield vs Yale
A promising 2-0 lead over Yale was turned right back around after the reigning Ivy League champions snapped back into a groove, coming up with a 3-2 win over Fairfield. The first two wins were close sets, with scores of 21-25 and 24-26; the Stags then failed to score more than 20 points for the remaining three sets.
Despite the negative nature of the overall scores, some impressive individual performances occurred throughout the match. Krubally painted the court with a career-high 17 kills and went .400 overall from the right side. Outside hitter Janna Schlageter ‘24 and Haut contributed with 11 kills of their own. Schlageter’s 11 kills matched her career high and was part of a .409 performance.
Adding onto the attacking end was Jandro with 24 assists and Montgomery with 16 to go along with 12 digs, earning her a double-double. Jandro wasn’t the only Stag with a double-double; Haut dug up 10 herself. Berg was the only Stag to play libero for all five sets and led the team with 21 digs.
Upfront, Fairfield strung together two team blocks. Schlageter teamed up with Walker and middle blocker Harlan Wyche ‘28 once apiece to get the two.
Game Three: Villanova vs Fairfield
The Sunday home match against Villanova started strong again with a set win, but the Stags failed to take another set from the Wildcats for the rest of the day.
Schlageter, Haut and Walker were at the top of the leaderboard with eight kills each. Elliott contributed six kills and Krubally added five of her own. In total, the Stags hit .123 as a team.
Wyche was having a good day by the net, putting down three kills and participating in six team blocks.
Berg led the defensive effort with 19 digs, while Elliott contributed seven from the back row. Schlageter added six digs, along with Jandro and Montgomery. Jandro and Montgomery shared setter duties, recording 23 and 14 assists, respectively.
“We’re inconsistent right now, we’re playing in spurts,” said Head Coach Nancy Somera in the game’s official press release. “And that isn’t all that unusual for any team in the first part of the season. We’re playing very good opponents and they are pushing us to be better and letting us see what we’re made of.”
“I liked how we progressed this weekend in terms of not playing our best against Colgate on Friday, but then challenging a very good Yale team in their gym yesterday and then challenging a talented Villanova team today,” she continued. “Of course, there’s always things to work on in terms of execution, but as far as our effort and our fight, we’re going to build on this weekend as we prepare for another strong opponent in St. John’s.”
The Stags are set for two more tests this week. First, they head to Queens to take on the Red Storm on Wednesday, with a 6 p.m. first serve. On Friday, West Virginia will visit the Leo D. Mahoney Arena for a 5 p.m. matchup, marking the first meeting between the Stags and Mountaineers since 2000.
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