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."