With a little over a week remaining until the 2026 Women’s Tennis MAAC Championship, the Fairfield Stags currently sit on the outside looking in. As of now, Fairfield is sporting a record of 4-3 in the MAAC and 6-12 overall. Their next home match on Sunday versus Niagara would almost certainly determine the Stags’ postseason chances: a win would place them in the top four of the MAAC and make them postseason-eligible, a loss would end their 2025-2026 campaign.

This is not lost upon any of the Fairfield players. Junior Anna Neyestani, the team’s leader in overall singles wins, knows what the team is playing for come this Sunday.

“There’s definitely more pressure to win this last one compared to other matches we’ve had. But pressure is a privilege, and I know how hard this team will fight to keep playing come next weekend,” Neyestani said.

Of course, the Stags may very well be in a different position right now if some close earlier-season losses had gone their way. Take their April 2 defeat to Sacred Heart University as an example: despite the 2-5 loss the scoreboard read, four out of the six singles matches went to three sets.

In order to play in Princeton, New Jersey next Saturday, Fairfield will need to avoid a slow start on Sunday against Niagara. If there is one thing that has plagued the team this season, it is that they too often play catch-up.

Part of the culprit to their loss to Sacred Heart was because of exactly this. The Stags failed to secure the doubles point, immediately placing them at a disadvantage.

“Oftentimes we struggle to find our groove in doubles. Winning doubles is really important because it gets the team off to a good start going into singles,” said Neyestani.

Assuming Fairfield is able to do this and move back into the win column, they would most likely be the four seed in the tournament. This would mean a rematch with Quinnipiac, a team that bested the Stags 6-1 in their meeting this past Wednesday.

Junior Maeve Cassidy is looking forward to this potential opportunity for redemption.

“First we have a job to do on Sunday…if we do end up seeing Quinnipiac in the first round, I know we’re prepared as a team to compete against them in any round…we have to win against them at some point, so why not do it earlier rather than later?” Cassidy said.

Fairfield may have their backs to the wall, but fortunately for them, this is a feeling they have experience dealing with. As seen in the past, the Stags have been able to play their best brand of tennis when it matters most.

Catch Fairfield in action at the Walsh Athletic Center this Sunday at 11:00 a.m.