FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Fairfield University women's lacrosse team will travel to New Britain, Conn. to take on Central Connecticut State on Friday, March 13 for their second road contest of the season. The game is slated for 5:00 p.m. on Arute Field.
Fairfield (3-2) vs. Central Connecticut State: Friday night's contest will be the first meeting between the two programs.
Scouting the Blue Devils: Central Connecticut State is currently 1-4 on the season, and is coming off a 21-3 loss to Albany last Saturday. The Blue Devils posted a victory over Iona (10-8), and have fallen to Jacksonville, Siena, Brown, and Albany. This year, Alexandra Hooker is Central Connecticut's leading scorer, tallying six goals with one assist for seven points. Senior goalkeeper Morgan Tullar will be charged with keeping the ball out the net for the Blue Devils. Tuller has tallied 54 saves with a save percentage of .391.
Last Time Out: The Fairfield women's lacrosse team was edged by New Hampshire, 9-7, on Friday, March 6 at Rafferty Stadium. In that contest, senior captain Courtney Chmil recorded a hat trick for the Stags, who also received goals from Alex Fehmel, Julieanne Mascera, and Jenna Fuchs. Goalkeeper Chelsey Sidaras tallied nine saves for the Stags.
National Notice: Entering the week, the Stags are among the national statistical leaders in several categories. Senior Meghan Reda is tied for sixth in ground balls per game (3.60) and is tied for 18th in caused turnovers per game with 2.00. Junior goalie Chelsey Sidaras is ranked 12th in save percentage (0.522) and 15th in goals against average (6.71). As a team, Fairfield is ranked seventh in saves percentage (.528) and 14 in scoring defense (6.80).
Ready for Rafferty: The Fairfield men's and women's lacrosse teams will celebrate their inaugural season at Rafferty Stadium throughout the spring of 2015. The construction of Rafferty Stadium was made possible through the generosity of Fairfield alumni, parents and friends. The stadium is named in recognition of the principal leadership gift from Larry Rafferty '64 and his family, and the field is named in recognition of a gift from Tim Conway '76 and family. Several other locations around the stadium are named to recognize major supporters and contributors to the project, who will be recognized along with additional donors on a plaque located inside the stadium.
Rafferty Stadium seats 3,500 fans in grandstands spanning both sidelines. The FieldTurf playing surface is complemented by state-of-the-art lighting, which provides optimal light levels for both competition and practice, and a Daktronics high-definition video scoreboard. In addition, the stadium includes a terrace level with a fully-enclosed press box that includes a large media suite, two VIP suites and a production suite to support the video capabilities of the scoreboard, television broadcasts and web streaming. On the ground level are two team rooms, food/beverage and apparel concessions, restrooms, a box office and entry plaza.
Looking Ahead: After Friday's matchup, the Stags will bring action home to Rafferty Stadium. Fairfield will host UConn on Wednesday, March 18 at 3:00 p.m. before hosting Manhattan on Saturday, March 21 as part of a lacrosse doubleheader celebrating Dedication Day of Rafferty Stadium.
Run with the Stags: Fairfield lacrosse season ticket packages and individual game tickets are available now. For more information and for group rates, please contact the athletics ticket office at StagsTickets@fairfield.edu or (203) 254-4136 or visit FairfieldStags.com/tix.
