Box Score

BERKELEY, Calif.  – The Fairfield University volleyball team finished the Cal Molten Classic with a hard-fought 3-2 (19-25, 28-26, 27-25, 23-25, 8-15) loss to UC Riverside this evening at Haas Pavilion. The Stags rookies had another strong showing as Camille Coffey led the way with 10 kills and a team-high 22 digs for her first collegiate double-double.

 

Coffey also added a block and an ace. Freshman Caitlin Stapleton had 11 kills and three blocks while classmate Marilyn Peizer led the Stags with 12 kills. Freshman Lindsay Weaver chipped in with eight kills and three total blocks while Carsen Mata had nine digs and three aces.

Senior Kendal Dirkin had a solid night, posting nine kills on .400 hitting with four total blocks. Sophomore Rachel Romansky tied a career with three total blocks to go along with 44 assists, six digs, and three kills.

 

There were 32 ties and 19 lead changes in a match that lasted two and a half hours. The Stags out-blocked the Highlanders (1-2) by a margin of 8-1 on the night. UC Riverside held a 76-56 advantage in kills while service aces were even at seven apiece.

 

UC Riverside tallied the first four points of the opening stanza, but Fairfield would set the tone for the entire match by rallying back. After the Stags tallied five unanswered points to go on top, 9-8, the Highlanders countered and regained a 12-11 lead. Dirkin tied the frame with kill while an UCR error and two kills by Peizer extended the Stags' lead to 15-12. The Highlanders chipped away and used an 8-0 run to overtake the Stags, 23-18. The Highlanders went on to the 25-19 win.

 

The second frame had 13 ties and eight lead changes. Trailing 17-15, back-to-back kills by Coffey and Dirkin tied things up. Dirkin and Romansky came through with a big block on the ensuing play to put the Stags ahead, 18-17. The two teams would continue to exchange points before the score came to rest at 23-23. Bianca Endersby put the Highlanders ahead with a kill but after a Fairfield timeout, Coffey retied the score with a kill of her own. A block by Dirkin and Stapleton gave the Stags a 25-24 lead, but Endersby tied it with a kill. After trading points, Dirkin once again gave Fairfield the lead with a kill. Romansky followed with a solo block to give the Stags the 28-26 win, their first set victory of the season.

 

The third set was also a back-and-forth battle with nine ties and five lead changes. UC Riverside was down 10-8 when it went on a 7-1 run. Peizer stopped the streak with a kill, but the Highlanders rolled out to the 19-13 advantage. The Stags did not back down, storming back to tie the score, 22-22, behind a 9-3 run which was capped off by a block from Weaver and Peizer. Down 25-24, Weaver held off set point with a kill. After an UCR error, Stapleton slammed home a feed from Romansky for the 27-25 win.

 

The Stags carried the momentum with them into the fourth set, surging out to a 9-2 lead. The Highlanders narrowed the gap to 12-11, but kills by Weaver and Coffey and a block by the rookie duo returned the advantage to four points. UC Riverside quickly erased the deficit and the two teams began to exchange points once again. The Highlanders gained some ground, moving out to a 24-21 lead. The Stags held off set point twice before UCR eked out the 25-23 win.

 

In the fifth set, the Stags were down by three early but came back to tie things up on a block by Dirkin and Stapleton. The Highlanders were able to fend off the attack, opening up an 11-6 lead. Fairfield could not recover, falling 15-8.

 

Fairfield (0-3) is back in action, September 2-3, when it travels to the Hofstra Invitational. In addition to the host Pride, the Stags will take on Princeton, NJIT, and St. Francis (NY).