Double digit winning streaks are becoming a norm in Stag Country. For the second consecutive season, Fairfield volleyball has reached a point in the season where they have won 10 games in a row. At the moment, the red and white stand at 14-6 overall, 9-0 in conference play, and have not dropped a game since Sept. 9 when they fell to Pacific Athletic Conference No. 12 Washington State.
In their past three matches, Fairfield has not dropped a set, winning by a combined score of 9-0 over Quinnipiac, Marist and Siena, respectively. Dominating the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference is nothing new for the Stags, but head coach Todd Kress believes that this year’s squad could not be more different than last year’s team that reached the National Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament.
“This year we have had two freshmen who have started in the past couple weeks in the middle for us so it’s a completely different look,” Kress said. “We are running a true 5-1 as opposed to a modified 5-1 and we have been injured for 75 percent of the season. This past weekend was the first time we had our starting lineup on the court. And now we are just starting to hit our stride and play quality volleyball.”
Now that is scary; Fairfield has won 10 in a row and has not even come close to their peak yet. Helping the cause is the return of star Megan Theiller ‘18, who has recently returned from injury and led the team with 10 kills against Siena. For Kress, he has one of his leaders back in the fold.
“She provided leadership from a vocal standpoint and the defensive standpoint and ball handling side,” Kress said. “It is huge to have her back on the court and the team certainly feels that as well.”
As a group, the team used its out-of-conference games in the beginning of the season to ready themselves for MAAC play and the tough schedule has certainly paid off.
“We got a lot out of our preseason schedule,” Kress said. “Boston College, St.John’s, Washington State, Providence, Milwaukee, all of which are high-level programs so playing the likes of that competition gave us a different look when it comes to conference play from a defensive standpoint playing against those types of offenses.”
All in all, Fairfield volleyball looks like it is poised to repeat as conference champions come November. With tough tests in the rearview mirror and the team beginning to hit its stride, the next few weeks are going to be quite exciting for the red and white as they look to continue to pile on the wins.
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