EDISON, N.J. – Joanne Saunders '02 of the Fairfield University volleyball team was among the four Fairfield greats selected to the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference 35th Anniversary Team for fall sports. Saunders was tabbed for the women's First Team.

Also recognized by the MAAC were women's soccer star Ahna Johnson '09 and men's soccer standouts Michael O'Keeffe '13 and Jim McElderry '93.

Saunders is Fairfield volleyball's all-time leader in kills with 1,799. She patrolled the court for the Stag from 1998-2001, amassing a program-best 4,253 swings en route to a .252 hitting percentage while appearing in 443 sets over 132 matches at Fairfield. Defensively, Saunders racked up 1,254 digs (10th all-time) to stand as one of just six Stags with over 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in her career – and one of only three to eclipse the 1,200 mark in both categories.

Saunders was lauded for her efforts as a First Team All-MAAC selection in three consecutive seasons from 1999-2001. She was the Most Valuable Player of the 2000 MAAC Championship as a part of three straight MAAC All-Championship honors (1998-2000) and was named AVCA All-Region in 2000 – making her the most recent (and perhaps only) MAAC player to earn the distinction.

Saunders' dominance translated into team success as she was a starter for four MAAC Championship and NCAA postseason teams. The Stags went 120-26 overall and 35-1 in MAAC play with Saunders on the court. The 2000 club made MAAC history as the first – and still just one of two – conference teams to take a set in the NCAA postseason. She was inducted into the Fairfield Athletics Hall of Fame in 2009.