Box Score

NEW BRITAIN, Conn. – The Fairfield University volleyball team was on the short side of three sets that came down to the wire, falling to host Central Connecticut State on day one of the CCSU Blue Devil Invitational. In the season opener for both clubs, CCSU took the 3-0 decision by a trio of razor-thin margins – 29-27, 25-23 and 29-27.

"It was a match of missed opportunities for us," said Head Coach Todd Kress. "We fought back numerous imes after putting ourselves in tough situations but were unable to capitalize on a few great opportunities."

Skyler Day led the Fairfield attack in her Stags debut. The sophomore shared the match high with 17 kills from the outside. Reigning MAAC Rookie of the Year Megan Theiller also reached double figures with 12 kills and served up a pair of aces to begin her sophomore campaign.

The offense was run through Lingenfelter, who fell just shy of a double-double in her first collegiate outing with 31 assists and nine digs. Sydney Buckley also put in work at the setter position and doled out 13 assists. The duo ran the Stags to a collective .224 hitting percentage on the afternoon.

Defensively, Mallory Bechtold filled the libero spot for the Stags and led all players with 23 digs. At the net, Oyinkansola Akinola and Megan O'Sullivan each had a hand in four of the Stags' eight total team blocks.

The Stags faced a 12-4 deficit in the opening set, but quickly cut that deficit in half. After a Day kill, O'Sullivan posted a kill and a block to end back-to-back rallies and Bechtold dropped in a service ace to trim the score to 12-8. Day would then account for the next three kills for Fairfield, followed by a run in which Chanel Cooper sent home three in a row. The Stags finally pulled even as Akinola and Buckley teamed up for a block to tie the frame at 17-17.

That deadlock was the first of 11 ties in the set. Neither team led by more than two points the rest of the way, with the Stags fighting off three CCSU set-point opportunities. However, it was the Blue Devils who would eventually string together three straight tallies to take the frame, 29-27.

In the second set, it was the hosts who climbed out of an early hole. Fueled by three kills apiece from Day and Theiller, the Stags had formed a 13-8 cushion before the CCSU strung together a 6-1 spurt to knot the set at 14-14. Fairfield rebuilt a lead at 20-16, but once again saw the Blue Devils draw even at 21-21. The stalemate held to 23-23, at which point CCSU broke out of the pack with consecutive points to swipe another set, 25-23, to take a 2-0 edge in the match.

The Stags kept CCSU at bay in the beginning stages of set three as the hosts were only once able to put together consecutive points. During that span, Fairfield constructed several two- and three-point stretches to slowly amass a 20-14 advantage. At that point, however, the Blue Devils broke through with a 9-2 stretch to surge in front, 23-22. Each of the Stags' captains – Theiller and O'Sullivan – sent home a kill to end the run and bring Fairfield to a set-point chance, but CCSU would ward off two opportunities and earned a shot at finishing off the match. This time, O'Sullivan and Day each ended a rally to keep the contest alive, but the Blue Devils struck last with three straight points to escape with a 29-27 win and cap the 3-0 decision.

CCSU was led offensively by freshman Raquel Quirarte, who matched Day's output with 17 kills. The Blue Devils, helmed by 37 assists from Makenna Lommori, hit .290 on the afternoon. On the defensive side, the hosts edged Fairfield with nine team blocks.

"We all realize that the season is a marathon and not a sprint," added Kress. "But we need to come out tomorrow with a cleaner effort and a sense of urgency both defensively and in transition."

The Stags will play two contests tomorrow to wrap-up action at the Blue Devil Invitational. Fairfield meets NJIT at 1:30 p.m. and Bucknell at 4 p.m.

Next weekend, the Stags take to the court at Alumni Hall for the first time with the Fairfield Invitational on Sept. 4-5. FairfieldStags.com will have complete coverage of the six-team, nine-match affair throughout the week.