FAIRFIELD, Conn. – So far 2017 has been quite memorable for the Fairfield University Women's Basketball team who remains unbeaten during the new calendar year. Both of those wins have come in the last four days and the Stags will be right back on the court. The Stags will be looking for their third win in the last six days when they host the Manhattan Jaspers on Sunday at 2pm on George Bisacca Court at Alumni Hall.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: The Stags won their second-straight game and avenged a conference loss to Siena by defeating the Saints 61-58 on the annual MAAC Kids' Day Out. Fairfield led wire-to-wire for the second time this season as Samantha Cooper continued her strong play by knocking down her first three 3-point attempts and the defense did the rest. The Stags held Siena to just eight first quarter points and a .286 first half shooting percentage to jump out to a 32-21 halftime lead, their largest halftime lead of the season. The Saints got back into the game mostly by their pressure defense which forced 16 turnovers, including three-straight in the fourth quarter. Siena cut that deficit to just two, but Fairfield went on an 8-2 run and made the shots when they had to for the victory. For the second-straight game, Cooper recorded a double-double as she led the team with 18 points and 13 rebounds. Kelsey Carey followed her with 16 points and seven rebounds of her own. Casey Smith, after playing just four minutes in the first half, made several shots down the stretch of the final quarter and finished with 10.
A BUSY STRETCH: The Fairfield University women's basketball team will play their third game in the last six days when they welcome the Manhattan Jaspers. It is the first time this season where the Stags have faced such a challenge, but it won't be the last time. The Stags will also play three games in a week in February when they travel to Manhattan (Feb. 12), Saint Peter's (Feb. 14) and host Marist (Feb. 16) in a one week span. This is the first time since the beginning of the 2014-15 season when the Stags have played three regular season games in a six-day span. To begin that campaign, the Stags took part in the URI Tip-Off Tournament and played East Carolina, Marshall, and then Hofstra three days later. To find an instance without a season tournament, you have to go back to the 2010-11 season when Fairfield played Saint Peter's, Rider, and NC State (Jan. 28- Feb. 1).
THE JASPERS SCOUTING REPORT: The Jaspers enter the contest after dropping five of their last six contests under first year Head Coach Heather Vulin. Most recently, the Jaspers dropped a 53-36 decision to Rider, with two Jaspers leading the scoring with six points. The backcourt is controlled by one of the most intimidating guards in the conference, especially on the defensive side, Amani Tatum who is the team's leader at 11.0 points per game. However, Tatum's true contribution comes on the defensive side where she averages 3.2 steals per contest, a number that puts her in the top-20 nationally. Tatum did not appear in the team's recent loss to Rider. The Jaspers make their name behind the arc and average 6.6 3-pointers per outing led by Maeve Parahus and Nyasha Irizarry who have both made over 20 long range shots this season.
UP NEXT: The Stags will finally have some time to rest as they have the next five days off before returning on the road at Rider on Saturday at 2pm.
