FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Emma Hubbard broke free from a scrum right in front of the goal and snuck it past the pile to give Central Connecticut a 1-0 victory over Fairfield in the final game of the Fairfield Invitational. With the victory, the Blue Devils earned a 2-0 record in the tournament and won the Invitational by goal differential. Hubbard was named the tournament's MVP.

“Although we suffered a disappointing result in overtime, the team showed a great deal of grit,” Head Coach Jim O'Brien said. “CCSU is a very good side and we gave them all they could handle.”

The Stags (1-3) showed that determination when Cassidy Boegel danced around a defender in the box with five minutes left in the first overtime, and nearly ended the contest. Boegel had an opening after breaking free and lined the ball to the upper right hand corner of the goal. Central Connecticut's (2-0) goalkeeper Nicki Turley made a tremendous fully extended dive to keep the game alive. Turley, the reigning NEC Goalkeeper of the Year, made two more saves, coming in the second overtime. Shots from Jenny Jacobs and Boegel were stopped as Fairfield put the majority of the pressure in overtime.

Central Connecticut, however, was the team to strike and end the match. Brianna Scaldaferri took a shot that bounced off the crossbar and landed right in front of the net. That started a scramble for the ball that continued until Hubbard was able to win the ball and finish in the net for the victory.

The major positives the Stags showed came from their backline as they held an opponent scoreless for 90 minutes for the first time this season. Rookies Holly Habyan and Alana Leahy shut down the Blue Devils offense allowing only five shots on goal, the majority of those coming far away from the goal.  Pamela Coufos showed gave the Stags a solid outing and Tessa Pedevillano gave the best outing of her career in her first home appearance. Jenna Pike picked up five saves in a solid start in net.

“Jenna is showing steady improvement and will become more confident as she gains experience over time,” O'Brien said. “We have a great group and we got many solid performances in particular from our young players. We saw great contributions for Tessa and Dominique Henry-Cole in the back and as a holding midfield player.”

The Stags also got solid contributions from Jackie Goudreault, Elena Santos, and a host of others as Fairfield continues to use their depth (23 of 30 players have made an appearance in one of the team's first four games).

“The team worked very hard for over 100 minutes today and we take a great deal of positives from the weekend,” O'Brien said.

For the game, the Stags were out-shot 22-14 and had four corner kicks compared to the Blue Devils' five.

Sara Plowman and Brenna Brown were named to the All-Tournament team. Joining them on the squad was Stony Brook's Tessa Devereaux and Raven Edwards, Drexel's Shae McCarty, Vanessa Kara, and Madison Dunn. Central Connecticut (the winners of the Invitational by goal differential) had Kelly Halligan, Nicki Turley, Jen Cafferky, and Emma Hubbard, the tournament's MVP.

The Stags are back in action on Friday when they welcome Towson to campus for a 7pm matchup.