FAIRFIELD, Conn. – For the third consecutive season and the 10th time in program history, Fairfield University Volleyball is the champion of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. The Stags swept visiting Iona this afternoon on George Bisacca Court at Alumni Hall to claim the 2017 MAAC Championship by set scores of 25-14, 25-19 and 25-11.
Skyler Day was named the Most Valuable Player of the 2017 MAAC Championship after hammering home 14 kills in today's contest and 26 finishers in six sets this weekend.
With their 21st consecutive win overall and 51st straight win over MAAC competitors, Fairfield (25-6) earns the MAAC's automatic bid to the 2017 NCAA Championship. The 64-team field will be revealed live on ESPNU on Sunday, Nov. 26 at 9 p.m.
"I'm incredibly proud of this team," said Head Coach
Todd Kress, who was named MAAC Coach of the Year for a record sixth time earlier this week. "This group supports each other, they fight for each other and they care about each other. And that's so important when you're building a program and establishing a culture. We've created an environment where people can be themselves and succeed, and that's what makes this team special."
Day adds MAAC Championship MVP to a 2017 résumé that includes her second consecutive MAAC Player of the Year honor and her third selection to the All-MAAC First Team. For the Stags' two postseason matches, she averaged 4.33 kills per set on .290 hitting with 3.50 digs per frame and a pair of blocks en route to MVP laurels.
Day was joined on the All-Championship Team by
Manuela Nicolini and
Luci Albertson. Nicolini ran the Fairfield attack to a .290 hitting percentage for the tournament, handing out 13.67 assists per set and racking up 12 blocks in six frames of work. Albertson notched 2.40 kills per set on .400 hitting and had a hand in 10 rejections.
In this afternoon's match, Day's match-high 14 kills came on .367 hitting on the outside.
Megan Theiller added eight finishers and
Mayda Garcia posted seven on nine errorless swings from the right side. Albertson and
Kaylie Butts contributed from the middle with five kills apiece, and Nicolini dumped over one from the setter spot. Fairfield hit at a collective .326 clip this afternoon, fueled by Nicolini's 37 assists.
In the back row, Theiller led all players with 13 digs, and
Taylor Rudeen picked up 11 from the libero spot. Day and
Sonja Radulovic each chipped in nine digs. Nicolini led the effort at the net with six blocks, while Albertson and Butts got a piece of four and three of the Stags' nine team blocks, respectively. The Fairfield defense limited Iona to a .053 hitting percentage.
Radulovic and
Jamie Calandro each landed two aces to aid in the scoring from behind the service line. Theiller and Nicolini both landed one winner to round out the Fairfield's six points from the serving game.
Iona (16-18) finishes their season in the MAAC Championship Match after earning a pair of postseason wins earlier this weekend. The Gaels were led by seven kills from Jamie Smith and six by All-Championship Team honoree Mia Bonsignore. Also tabbed with All-Championship laurels was setter Emma Rose, who distributed 19 assists for Iona. Tess Connolly led the back row with six digs.
"I think that Iona was playing the best volleyball of any of the six teams that were here this weekend," said Kress of the third-seeded Gaels. "So for us to go out and play that well – limiting their offense and Claire Archibald, who is clearly one of the top players in the conference – was great. I have tremendous respect for what (Head Coach) Patric (Santiago) has done in just two years with that program, and I know that they will be one of the teams to beat going into next year."
Fairfield's 10th MAAC Championship is a new conference record, breaking a tie with Siena. The Stags are the fifth team to win at least three straight MAAC Championships, including their own record of five in a row established from 1997-2001. The 2017 Fairfield squad is the first since Manhattan in 2003 to sweep both of their postseason matches en route to the MAAC Championship.
Individually, Kress joins the Saints' Garvey Pierre with his fifth MAAC Championship (1997, 1998, 2015, 2016, 2017).
FairfieldStags.com will have all of the latest information when the Stags learn their 2017 NCAA Championship opponent and destination next Sunday, Nov. 26.
