Men's Basketball Picked Number 1

The Fairfield University Men's Basketball team was picked to finish atop of the conference on Tuesday at Media Day. The Stags picked up 96 votes which was 5 more than runner up and 3 time defending champions Siena. The squad has been picked first by numerous college basketball magazines, including SI and ESPN.

The team also includes a couple of players who were named to all-MAAC teams. Derek Needham and Yorel Hawkins both picked up the preseason nods. Needham, the MAAC Rookie of the Year, was picked to the conference first team. The sophomore guard was named to the All-American freshmen team last year and broke almost every Fairfield freshmen record as he was the team's leading scorer and in the top ten in the nation for assists among freshmen. The freshman led the team to the Championship game and one shot away from upsetting the Saints. He became one of the most successful freshmen athletes ever to pass through the MAAC by winning a record 10 Rookie of the Week awards.

Sophomore slump? It's happened to the best of them. Teams are no longer going to have to worry about Anthony Johnson and will be focusing more on Needham. Can he handle the pressure of leading the team that is supposed to win the title?

Yorel Hawkins was picked to the finish on the All-MAAC Second Team. The senior was injured at the end of last year which forced him to miss several regular season games plus the conference tournament. He was one of the leading scorers on the team before falling victim to the injury bug, can he sustain it this year? He is going to be asked to score at will and become their offensive threat. He has never had that responsibility before and it will be interesting to see if he can handle it.

Women's Basketball Picked to Finish 4th

The Fairfield university Women's Basketball team was picked to finish 4th in the MAAC Conference yesterday during media day. For the full story click here.

Fairfield is behind schools such as Loyola, Iona, and Marist. The Red Foxes are picked to finish 1st in the Conference for the 6th straight year. The Stags are in a 4th place tie with Manhattan College. Last year the Stags were picked 6th in the MAAC but ended up going all the way to the MAAC championship game. Coach Joe Frager said that the team expected to get around a 4th place ranking but the coach does not put much emphasis on pre-season predictions.

The biggest problem for the Stags will be the graduation of Stephanie Geehan she was a one woman wrecking crew. She was almost the entire team last year the Stags would not have been close to where they finished last year without the tremendous season that she had. Who will be that one Stag to fill the immortal shoes of Stephanie Geehan? Well three players were named to all MAAC teams

Desiree Pina was named to the all MAAC second team. She was the Stags leading returner scorer and for the first time in her career she will be looked to be the star of the team. She has great ball handling ability and can drive the lane like no one I've seen before however she will not be having the same supporting cast as years before. It will be interesting to see how she reacts to being the captain of this young team.

Taryn Johnson was picked to be on the all MAAC third team. The name of her game is athleticism. She can jump higher than anyone on the team and was a big part of their playoff run.The Stags started to heat up when Taryn Johnson started to heat up. She's going to be asked to be the Stags go to rebounder.

Katelyn Linney was also named to the all MAAC third team. The Sophomore had a breakout freshman year and could easily have won the MAAC rookie of the year combined with Pina and Vasquez she will be an even more deadly three point threat.

I really like the team this year. They have three good players but no one great. Unlike the years in the past where they had a go-to scorer it seems like they'll be fighting for a lot of points. But never underestimate the coaching of Joe Frager he is smart and he knows the game it should be a fun year.

Women’s Soccer Stays Alive, Boudreau makes history

The women's soccer team was 20 minutes from their season being in serious jeopardy, but they kept their playoff hopes alive on Sunday in a must win game over the Niagara Purple Eagles. It was a day to remember for a number of exciting reasons, one even historic, and an afternoon that at least three players will never forget. The class of 2010 bid farewell to the home crowd on the Fairfield University campus. They are two of the most accomplished players in the history of the program and both showed their promise early on as they captured
the MAAC Rookie of the Year award in back-to- back seasons. 148 starts, 135 points , 43 goals, and 49 assists later these two players have inked their names in a number of records, team captains Nicole Cavallaro and Casey Frobey competed in their last game on Lessing Field. "I love playing here and there's not many memories I don't like so it's only happy times," said Casey Frobey. She ranks fifth in the school's history with points (74) and goals (29). It's the last time they will compete on the lowcut grass on Lessing Field, the last time they will stare up at the dark red clock ticking down on the scoreboard above, but fortunately for the Stags it ended up being the last time they could celebrate a win on campus. "It was extremely sad," said Nicole Cavallaro. The New York native will graduate second in Fairfield history with assists (33).

But after the players and their parents were presented their flowers, the flashes of the cameras faded, and the seniors jogged out for the last time wearing their cardinal red uniforms it was a junior who earned her own celebration. Goalkeeper Kelly Boudreau broke Anne Lyons' shutout record set a decade ago. The Farmington, Connecticut native secured her record setting 25^th clean sheet but wouldn't take all the credit, "I wouldn't be here without my team especially my back four, Alyssa Decker does not get enough credit, she's been here since I've come here, so it's all her, it's all the back four it's not an individual award it's more a team award," she said. Boudreau has helped the team from the day she arrived. She's a two time All-MAAC Second team representative and is also tops in the program history in goals against average. "To do it in her junior year, she's still got her senior year, she's going to pad that record for a long time," said Jim O'Brien. The sixth year head coach is a fellow goalkeeper from his playing days and he knows a great talent, "I think she's definitely one of the tops that we ever had and Fairfield has been known to have good quality goalkeepers over the years," he said. Boudreau reached double digits in shutouts for the season but none were more important than number ten.

The Stags entered the game in sixth place in the MAAC staring up at a 4 way tie for third with only the top four teams advancing to the conference tournament. With the added three points, Fairfield has moved into sole possession of third place. With a loss the team would have been in playoff crisis, but they refused to have the same team potentially end their season two years in a row. Last year the third seeded Stags were upset by the Purple Eagles in the First Round of the Tournament down in Disney. "We wanted to get a little payback," coach O'Brien said. The players came pumped for the rematch, "we wanted to beat them and show them we were actually the better team," Frobey said.

The Stags will play two more games on the road to close out the regular season. "We're peaking offensively at the right time," Jim O'Brien said. If Fairfield wins both games they will automatically clinch a playoff spot. Their vital road trip will begin when they will travel to Siena on Friday. The Saints were the last undefeated untied Division one school in the nation and were once ranked as #25 in the nation. However, the last time they played on that field up in Albany they won the MAAC title. After two days, the Stags will travel up to Poughkeepsie to take on the current number one seed Marist. The Red Foxes are currently 6-1 in the conference but the players actually enjoy playing on the road, "Personally, I get more pumped up for road games than I do home games, I don't know why," Boudreau said.

After a disappointing loss to Canisius the Stags faced a must win game and they were up for the challenge. With all the storylines. The playoff chase, the rivalry with Niagara, the graduation of one of the most successful senior class, and Boudreau's new school record, Frobey hopes this can propel the team, "I think the emotion that the team showed when we scored the goal and at the end of the game is something that we can remember for next week and we'll just remember that feeling and want to play for that feeling."

Men's Sixth Man?

Who will be the men's basketball team sixth man on the year? With the graduation of the best sixth man in the MAAC last year in Mike Evanovich, this becomes a even bigger problem. The candidates are all guards who can add speed and quickness to the team that is already comprised of many guards. Here's who i think are the top 3 candidates if we go by the following as the starting five.

Starting Five:
Derek Needham
Yorel Hawkins
Warren Edney
Colin Nickerson
Ryan Olander

Top three:
Sean Crawford: He is a feisty and quick guard who is one of the biggest threats from three point land. Not only can he beat his defenders with his speed but he controls the ball very well and is a good scorer. The biggest part of his game is the intensity that he brings in every time he comes off the bench. Numerous times last year he was the spark plug of the struggling team that add intensity and a desire to win.

I always thought that the best player Crawford could become is a good sixth man. I think this is his year to show that he can do this. The team is also going to struggle behind the arc with the departure of Mike Evanovich so they need someone to add to that game. He also looks alot like John Legend.

Lyndon Jordan: Two years ago, who would have thought we would have mentioned his name like this. But Jordan has shown his clutch factor in games past. He was big for us in 2008 with all the injuries but slowed down a little bit last year when he was asked to go to a starting role. He brings speed and quickness and also I feel a good knowledge of the game.

I will never forget looking at the game report after the Fordham contest and seeing that Lyndon Jordan made the winning shot. Bob Heussler's call said it all, "Lyndon Jordan the unlikeliest of heroes have given the Stags the one point win." I don't think he is better than Crawford but he does have something that helps the team out on a daily basis.

Greg Nero: This is the hardest one because Nero has enough talent to start and be one of the team's better players. All of his teammates have said that looking at him in practice, he has not missed a beat. He says that he expects to play 20-25 minutes a game, but Cooley is taking it easy on him. If he does come off the bench, he will not only be the most talented bench player in the MAAC, but he will also bring size and a grit to him that the team needs. It's a small team but when Nero wants to score, there is no stopping him.

Nero is one of my favorite players because of his competitiveness. He pushed his body beyond reasonable expectations and almost paid the price. I still think he is one of the best in the MAAC and just can't wait to see him play. When he is fully healthy, I believe that he will will become a full time starter.

Kelly Boudreau named MAAC Student Athlete of the Week

According to the MAAC website, Stags goal keeper Kelly Boudreau has been named the MAAC Student Athlete of the Week.

The Stags goal keeper is currently tied for second place in school history in shutouts and is only a half a shutout away from surpassing Anne Lyons and becoming the new leader. She has an amazing .38 GAA in MAAC play and a .883 overall good enough for 1st in the MAAC and 9th in the nation!

She also leads the MAAC in save percentage with a whopping .931.

Women's Soccer Looking to Clinch MAAC Spot

The Fairfield University women's soccer team is looking to clinch one of the top four spots to qualify for the MAAC tournament. The Stags are currently in third place with 10 points (3-1-1). There is a 3 way tie for fourth place with Canisius, Niagara, and Loyola all deadlocked at 9 points. Fairfield will have 4 games remaining in their regular season. They control their own destiny to clinch a tournament berth. If they win 3 of their final 4 games then they are automatically in. They can also clinch if they go 2-0-2. If they sweep and win all four games then they will clinch the MAAC regular season crown.

It is probably easier said then done as their final four games are all against teams in the race. Canisius and Niagara will travel to Fairfield this weekend. Both teams are tied in fourth with 9 points. Next week the soccer team will wrap up the regular season as they travel to Marist and Siena. Both teams are numbers 1 and 2 respectfully in the MAAC. Siena was the last unbeaten and untied team in the nation and once stood with a #25 ranking.

The only loss the team has in the conference was against Loyola, the only other team in the playoff hunt. The Greyhounds are the only team out of the Championship hopefuls that the Stags have faced.

It is sure going to be an exciting weekend. If they can sweep the series they will be in much better shape but this is a HUGH weekend for them. The downside is that they end the year with four tough opponents. Let's see if they can do it.

Canisius College Friday 7 p.m
Niagara University Sunday 1 p.m

Both games this weekend will be available for viewing on-line through the Stags partnership with Stretch Internet. On Sunday afternoon, Ivey Speight will be providing play-by-play commentary on the broadcast. As always, livestats are available for both games.

Stags Country Season Two

The Fairfield Magazine Show, Stags Country, will air Saturday at noon on My 9. This is the second season of the show which have aired stories such as Anthony Johnson and his battle with a blood clot, the Emmy award-winning story about cross country runner Greg Chase, and the men's lacrosse adoption of Ryan Tucker.

This show would feature such stories as Greg Nero recovering from his illness, Coach Jim O' Brien and Shannon Fay returning to their old roots, and the swim team raising money for "Swim for the Sound." Go to YouTube to see the previous stories.

Fordham 3 Fairfield 2

The Fairfield University Women's Volleyball team (8-14, 7-3 MAAC) was edged 3-2 by the Fordham Rams (13-14) last night. They have lost four of their last six matches and have lost two straight against the Jesuit rival. For the full story click here.

The Least You Should Know:

- Rachel Romansky had a career high, 60 assists in the contest. That was in the top fifteen in Fairfield history in a single game. Lauren Balmert never had such a game.

- Defending MAAC offensive player of the week, Haililani Pokipala had the seventh double double of the year with 13 kills and 10 digs.

- Alex Lopez had a season high of 13 kills.

- Kara Reis had a season high of 20 digs

This is probably the best game the Stags had played all year. Four Stags have registered a season high in a category. The only thing is, can they keep this up in MAAC play? Coming up, they play Iona who have already beaten them this year. then they play the top two teams in the conference the following week. This is going to be a crucial week for The Stags so they can play their best before the tournament.

Haililani Pokipala wins MAAC Offensive Player of the Week

Fairfield University outside hitter Haililani Pokipala has won the MAAC Offensive Player of the Week. For the full story click here. In the weekend she had 21 kills and 19 digs. She also recorded a double double in the win against St. Peters a win that snapped the team's three match losing streak. For the season, the Hawaiian native leads the team in kills per set and is second in digs per set.

She really had a great weekend, but is this the same confident team? In the video posted on fairfieldstags.com, Pokipala says that the goal on the team in the beginning of the year was to obviously win a MAAC Championship, but now she says the goal is to stay focused in practice and hopefully it will translate to a win. I have never seen a team lose so much confidance. When the time gets tough, the good and winning teams will persevere and win that game and win the crown. The team has gone to the MAAC tournament as the top seed every year since 2001 and has not won one championship. Is this a strong enough team to come back from difficulties and win one without the best talent?

WVOF to offer fan bus to CT6

WVOF has announced that they will offer a fan bus for students FREE of charge to the Connecticut 6 basketball event. The Stags tip off their season in the early game of the 3 against Sacred Heart. They play at 4:00 and the bus will leave at 1:30 after free pizza at the Levee. The other buses will cost $5 but WVOF is the only free bus. The contest will be announced at a future date so come and support your Stags!

WVOF to broadcast Red Sea Madness

WVOF has announced that they will broadcast LIVE from Alumni Hall the Red Sea Madness event. Since students are the only ones allowed this will be the only way to listen to the event.
The event will consist of a three point shooting contest and a skills competition. Don't forget the slam dunk competition. It is the first look at the new men's and women's basketball teams. So tune in to wvof.org or 88.5 FM or click here.

Boudreau wins MAAC and ECAC Defensive Player of the Week

Stags goalie Kelly Boudreau has been named the MAAC and ECAC Defensive Player of the Week. For the full story click here. It is the third time she has been awarded this honor and the second time for the ECAC.

She earned back to back shutouts this weekend while stopping 7 shots. For the season she has 8 shutouts to add that to her now 23 career. She is now 1.5 behind first place in the history of Fairfield University.

She ranks tops in the MAAC in:
Goals Aganist Average
Saves
Shutouts
Save Percentage- which is tenth in the nation!

She has not allowed a goal in 290 minutes in MAAC Play.

Red Sea Madness on Friday

Hey fans don't forget to come out to the Red Sea Madness on Friday at 9 PM in Alumni Hall. There will be free food and prizes. WVOF will have it's own table at the event giving away promotional stuff. Excited for basketball? Well, the men's and women's basketball team will be involved in different contests such as a skills competitions, three point shooting, and slam dunk challenge.

So come see your favorite Stags officially begin the basketball season!

Saint Peter's Wesley Jenkins suffers knee injury

According to Jersey Journal's online sports blog, St. Peter's Wesley Jenkins has suffered a serious knee injury. Apparently he has injured his ACL in a campus pick up game. The injury is noted to not as be as serious as previously thought.

According to reports, Jenkins is not going to need surgery, but MIGHT have to sit out the entire year. No decision has been made to redshirt him.

Jenkins averaged 13.8 PPG and is one of the league's premiere shooters. He is arguably one of the team's best players.

BIG news! I don't know if the Peacocks can compete without Jenkins. They will have to rely on Ryan Bacon and their other players. Jenkins had the possibility to become the MAAC Player of the Year.

Fairfield Teams Up with Stretch Internet

Fairfield University has announced a new partnership with Stretch Internet to broadcast the remaining collegiate events. The first game will be Friday night with the women's soccer team hosting Manhattan. For the full story click here.




Prices Include:
All-Access Package- all events that Fairfield broadcasts $125 per year
Fall Broadcast- all fall sports (soccer, volleyball, field hockey) $69
Basketball Broadcast $99
Lacrosse Broadcast $49
Per-game Fee $7.95

The game broadcasts will STILL be broadcasted on wvof.org, and the audio from that will also be available on the internet broadcast. A full schedule will be announced shortly.

Click here to get started!

Women's Basketball Announces 2010 Team Captains

The Fairfield Stags women's basketball team has announced the captains for the 2010-2011 season. They are: Junior Sarah Paulus, Junior Desiree Pina, and Senior Kelly Romano.

Sarah Paulus missed all but 4 games last year after suffering a knee injury. She has 3.6 PPG and 6 assists to go along with 6 turnovers. All reports and talks indicate that she will play this season and the knee is fine. She brings great leadership to the floor and seems to have great composure. She reminds me of Megan Caskin. A guard who is not know for her scoring but she can control the game.

Kelly Romano played in 16 games without scoring a point. She is one of the 2 seniors on the team combined with Joelle Nawrocki. I wonder if the Westport guard will get any more playing time this year. I remember 2008 when Nawrocki was in the same position, only really playing in blow out games, and then she earned a starting nod last year and played in more minutes in 3 game then she did in her career.

Desiree Pina can have a breakout year. She was named to the All-MAAC Third Team and the all tournament team. She struggled at first moving to the point guard position but she really became one of the better players in the MAAC. She was great at driving the lane and getting open. For the first time in her career, she will become the star of the team.

Stags Selected Number 1 in MAAC, 83rd in Country

In the collegehoopsnet season preview, they have ranked the Stags as the probable winner of the MAAC and the 83rd best team in the country. The Stags have been getting recogniztion from many different college previews this year.

It is interesting to note that they put alot of emphasis on Yorel Hawkins. "This is a team that lacks size." They also argue that if Hawkins gets hurt than they will not have the depth to recover like they did last year.

They also expect Edney to start from the beginning of the year and even have them in the projected 5. Earlier in the year, Cooley admitted that he felt that Edney will never be fully recovered from his Achilles heel injury.

Also of note, it doesn't seem like they like the status of Greg Nero. "Anything they can get out of Nero is a bonus- a big bonus." After hearing reports like this, it makes you wonder how effective he can be this year.

Andy Katz Interview with Coach Cooley

On Fairfieldstags.com the new video on the men's basketball section, they podcast the sit down from Katz Corner with Richmond's head coach Chris Mooney and Coach Cooley. Cooley talks about the pressure to win the MAAC Tournament, the expansion to 68 teams, and how they got Derek Needham.

I always wondered how they were able to get Derek Needham, well the mystery is solved and all the details are right there.

WVOF Lyndon Jordan Interview

WVOF had the chance to talk with Lyndon Jordan and here is what he had to say about the upcoming year and the heartbreaking way last year ended.

Q: How excited are you for the upcoming year?
A: Very excited. We got a great squad. We were so close last year. But this year we can get all the way.

Q: Is there any one game you're looking forward to?
A: Every game is important but definitely looking forward to play in the MAAC Championship on our home court.

Q: When you play Siena, will you see it as a revenge game, is there still a bad taste left in your mouth after that game?
A: Somewhat because we lost to them three times in the year, not just in the championship and we thought we were capable of beating them. So yeah we're going to step our game up kinda get revenge.

Q: What was the best part of playing on the team last year?
A: Probably playing against George Mason and seeing we had the team of guys who were down and everybody thought we were out and we made one of the greatest comebacks and to see our whole team was just determined. That's probably the best moment.

Q: You're probably going to be preseason number 1, is there any added pressure on the team?
A: Definitely. Coach says it every day at practice. You know when your the number one team, everybody's looking at you, everybody wants to beat you. Just like last year everybody wanted to beat Siena and now that's us. So we just got to come prepared everyday.

Rachel Romanksy earns MAAC Rookie of the Week

Stags setter Rachel Romansky earned her first MAAC Rookie of the Week. For the full story click here. She had a breakout weekend posting 67 assists and also tallying 11 kills on a .409 hitting percentage.

I honestly think she could be one of the better players on the team already. It seems that every game, she does something positive for the team. She has been filling up her stat sheet each game and has been very impressive even getting 8 kills in the loss to Iona. If you see her play a game you will be very impressed. She has her patent jump set and is deadly accurate. When she tries to make a kill, she will use this jumper to her advantage and has the talent to put the ball EXACTLY where she wants it. Congrats!

WVOF to air Soccer and Volleyball Games

WVOF has announced that they will air most of the remaining home conference games for men's and women's soccer and volleyball for the season. The first game will be on Friday at 7:00 PM and can be listened to by clicking here. Or go to wvof.org and click on "Listen to Web Stream"

Fairfield Women's game Postponed

The Fairfield Women's Soccer game against the Harvard Crimson has been postponed due to rain. There is no makeup date as of yet and it will be announced at a future date. The women's team hosts Manhattan College on Friday night at 7 PM. That game will be broadcasted on wvof.org with student broadcasters.

Volleyball Finally beats Marist

The Fairfield University volleyball team went 1-1 over the weekend dropping a 3-1 decision to the Iona Gaels on the road Sunday. But the day before, the team gave it's home crowd something to cheer about enjoying their most lopsided win of the season sweeping the Marist Red Foxes 3-0 at Alumni Hall on Saturday afternoon. The team laughed and smiled during the closing stages of the match leaping in delight after their fifth straight conference win. The cheerful atmosphere around the team was the exact opposite sensation the players experienced the last time they battled Marist.

It was right after last year's MAAC Semifinals and their stunning loss to the Red Foxes. The Stags entered the tournament as the number one seed for the sixth consecutive year. They found themselves against the fourth seeded Marist Red Foxes, a team that Fairfield was 24-3 against in their program history and had not lost to in 6 years. It was supposed to be a magical special season. The rise of Brianna Dixion, who became the MAAC Rookie of the Year. The story of senior Katie Mann, one of the best players in program history, in her quest to win her first MAAC Championship. The chemistry and excitement that the team brought to every game. All of that thrilling promise ended on the last point of the fifth set when Brianna Dixion's spike went off the legs of the referee. "It was sad. We shouldn't have lost to a team like that," now senior Lauren Hughes said. "After a loss like that you're definitely crushed anytime," coach Alija Pittenger said. The head coach, who is now in her third year, was given the difficult task to move the program forward and not to dwell on the past.

Out with the 2009 Fairfield Stags Volleyball Team. In with 2010 FUVB. This is a new team with an old goal, "to win the MAAC Championship," Lauren Hughes said. They are determined to leave the past in the rear view mirror and be driven by the motivation to win. Despite playing the same team that knocked them out of the tournament and killed their chances at a MAAC title, this team did not see that as anymore incentive to get some revenge. "It's funny. We actually asked them if playing Marist had anything to do with it. They said no, not really. So I think they've just been working hard and they had a fun time today," Pittenger said after the win.

It would be hard for any team coming into a year trying to forget about the heartbreaking end of the prior season and the loss of the key player and the undeniable leader of the group. But if they want to accomplish what they are set out to do, Fairfield would have to do just that. In order to do that, they would have to find a new leader. Someone who can lead by example on and off the court. They might have found that in senior Lauren Hughes. The California native ranks third on the team in kills and has amassed 790 in her four year career. She finished the Marist win with six kills. Sophomore Brianna Dixion led the team with 10 on a career high .600 hitting percentage. Being one of the few seniors on the squad, Hughes will have to help the team learn from her experiences. Hughes has great expectations for the team and the confidence that they can succeed, "I think we're coming together and playing how we should be playing and we're just going to beat every team out there."

Men's Basketball Announces Exhibition Games

The Fairfield Men's Basketball team announced the two pre-season exhibition games for the upcoming year. For the full story click here. They are the same games that they played in last year. Fairfield went 1-1 in the preseason in 2009, losing to Bridgeport.

Here's the Schedule:
November 1st vs University of Bridgeport 7:30
November 8th vs Stonehill 7:30

28 days remaining until the big tip. I actually love the Bridgeport games as it is one of the highest attended games and the Bridgeport fans are wild at the game. Great atmosphere.

400 minutes- No goals

With the scoreless tie against the Iona Gaels to start the MAAC portion of their schedule, the Fairfield Women's Soccer team has not scored a goal in now 400 minutes. That's 5 hours! Their last goal came against Stony Brook, on September 16th.

I say it after every game. The team has the talent. Every place you look, they have quality forwards who are expected to be great. Frobey, Corniel, Cavalarro, and Allaway are some of the best talents in the MAAC. As a side note the last two goal that the team scored came off the foot of freshmen Jac Ley.

The team is back in action on Tuesday when they take on Harvard at Lessing Field. Fairfield has not scored on its home field in over 300 minutes.