Unbeaten in conference play and on a six-game winning streak, Fairfield women’s lacrosse takes on Mount St Mary’s Wednesday on Lessing Field at 1:00 p.m. The Mountaineers are also without loss in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and are joint-first in the regular season standings alongside Niagara and Fairfield.
Rankings wise, Mount will be the Stags’ toughest opponent in conference play so far. The Mountaineers defeated the Stags 10-7 in last year’s matchup, handing Fairfield their first MAAC loss of the season, and also breaking a 14-game conference regular season winning streak. However, beyond that result, Fairfield have had the upper hand, winning seven of the previous 11 matchups.
Despite eight saves from sophomore Keira Furey in goal and two scores each from junior Kelly Haggerty and senior Mary Henry on the offensive end, the scoring consistency across the first three quarters from the Mountaineers in the teams’ previous matchup was sufficient to hold off a 4-1 fourth quarter surge from the Stags.
Mount sophomore Brooke Molchanoff has been a dominant force for the Mountaineer attack, scoring 51 goals and adding 17 assists to bring her season total to 68 points. A season-high nine goals for Molchanoff came in a 20-12 win against Lehigh.
With the Fairfield defense showing continued poise and composure, the Stags’ attack stood out over the weekend against Manhattan. Led by graduate student Haley Burns, who scored a career best five goals, the Stags’ attack rounded off a complete performance, and one that provided answers to questions about the chemistry and identity of the offense.
Haggerty has continued to show her attacking strength for the Stags, scoring four goals against the Jaspers and subsequently being named MAAC Offensive Player of the Week with nine goals and two assists across her appearances against Manhattan and Rider. The junior now has 32 goals and 13 assists on the season, with a season-high of five goals against the Broncs.
Two of Haggerty’s scores were set up by sophomore Tessa Caputo, who earned six assists on Saturday – her most of the season – and continues to lead the Stags with 48 points (17 goals and 31 assists).
“Saturday was a really good confidence game for us,” Fairfield graduate student Grace Slater said. “We scored a lot of goals – 18, and that’s our joint highest of the season, and something which we haven’t really seen this year. Almost 70% of our goals were assisted which is also something we haven’t seen much of this season.”
Only five of Fairfield’s 18 goals against Rider were assisted, compared to 12 of 18 against Manhattan, highlighting a much more cohesive attacking performance.
This improved attacking chemistry is something Fairfield head coach Laura Field will likely be eager to see against a strong Mount defense, where sustained build-up play and teamwork will be key to breaking through and getting on the scoreboard.
“We really need to come out strong like we did on Saturday against Mount St. Mary’s,” junior Katie Repp said. “It’s going to be a great test for us so we need to stick it to them early and fight hard.”
Wednesday’s matchup is the first of this week’s doubleheader, with conference play continuing on Saturday as the Stags travel to Quinnipiac, where they play at 11:00 a.m.
Admission will be free for all fans on Wednesday, and is for all home games this season.
