Fairfield’s women’s lacrosse team looks to extend its four-game winning streak as it takes on Rider University on the road Wednesday at 3:00 PM.
With Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play well underway with wins against Siena, Sacred Heart and Canisius, the Stags’ record stands at 8-3, 3-0 as they enter the matchup against the Broncs.
Fairfield has historically dominated Rider, comprehensively winning both of the previous matchups. Last year’s contest ended in a 17-7 victory for the Stags, with attacking consistency demonstrated across all four quarters. Graduate student Grace Slater reinforced the offensive threat, contributing with four goals of her own, along with then-sophomore Kelly Haggerty and then-senior Haley Burns adding two of their own.
Rider University has struggled to find both scoring success and wins from the start of the season, holding a 1-11 overall record and sitting at 0-3 in conference play. Their sole win of the season came from their season opener against FDU.
The Broncs enter the game with the Stags coming off a 17-2 loss to the Mount St. Mary’s Mountaineers, who are also undefeated in the MAAC thus far, and have scored 52 goals across their three conference games while conceding just 13.
Rider graduate student Kayleigh Colleary leads the Broncs on the attacking end, with 15 goals and 12 assists, combining for 27 points so far this season. With Fairfield coming off arguably its strongest defensive performance of the year against Canisius, the Stags will aim to contain Colleary and limit Rider’s attacking threats.
With 14 caused turnovers, four of those coming from Burns, Fairfield limited Canisius to only nine goals, its lowest total of the season. Senior Katherine Shammas collected three caused turnovers and two ground balls too, further stabilizing the Fairfield defense.
Golden Griffins attacker Ella Forcucci was held to just two goals in the game, both from the eight meter mark, which is a testament to the Fairfield defense. Forcucci leads the MAAC in goals scored with 38, and also has 14 assists to her name. She had scored nine hat tricks in the team’s 10 previous games before facing Fairfield.
While the Stags are “offensively, still looking for something that puts us over the top” as head coach Laura Field said, the team can remain confident in the continued strength and structure of its defense.
That said, sophomore Tessa Caputo continues to be a key attacking force for the Stags, scoring three goals and adding one assist against Canisius. Caputo still leads the Stags with 39 points (16 goals, 23 assists) on the year. The sophomore has contributed to Fairfield’s offensive effort in every game this season, tallying at least one goal or one assist, highlighting the consistency of her performances.
Saturday’s game also saw Fairfield seniors Kit Zanelli, Keira Savage, Mary Henry, Brynn Donnelly, Grace Kiernan and Shammas recognized and celebrated for their contributions to Fairfield Athletics on their Senior Day.
Wednesday’s matchup with Rider is the first of this week’s double-header, with the Stags returning home on Saturday to play Manhattan in another conference game at 12:00 p.m. Admission is free for all fans.
