FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Fairfield University Women's Lacrosse enters the stretch run of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) schedule on Saturday with a 3 p.m. visit to Siena. The Stags are currently 10-3 on the season, riding a six-game winning streak to an unblemished 5-0 MAAC tally.
 
Postseason Bound
Fairfield and Siena have both clinched berths in the upcoming 2019 MAAC Championship. With a win on Saturday, the Stags would lock up at least a top four seed in the six-team tournament, and could clinch the #1 overall seed and a share of the MAAC Regular Season Championship with a victory coupled with a Manhattan loss to Quinnipiac on Saturday.
 
Last Time Out
Fairfield maintained its position atop the MAAC with a 13-12 win over visiting Monmouth on Wednesday afternoon at Rafferty Stadium. The Stags got points from eight different players in the outing, including Taylor Mitchell's 100th career goal.
 
Kelly Horning and Diana DeVita led the offense with four points apiece. Horning tallied her third hat trick of the campaign to go along with one assist, while DeVita scored two goals and distributed a pair of helpers.
 
Brooke Gallagher added a goal and an assist this afternoon to reach 50 points on the season. She is the 26th Stag to reach the 50-point mark, fueled by 23 assists this spring to rank seventh on Fairfield's single-season charts.
 
Fairfield's swarming defense effort pressured the MAAC's most potent offense into 18 turnovers. Kennedy Slater and Megan Beach picked up three caused turnovers apiece, with the quartet of Horning, Mitchell, Maggie Reynolds and Caroline Mangan each forcing two Monmouth giveaways.
 
Reynolds also led the way in the midfield with four draw controls. Her efforts on the draw including winning the two of the final three restarts, both when the Hawks had cut the Fairfield lead to a single goal.
 
In the cage, Olivia Conquest made eight saves and picked up four ground balls. Her 10th win makes her the sixth Stag to win double-digit games in a single-season in goal. She is only the third Stag to reach 10 wins in her first active campaign protecting the Fairfield cage.

Scouting Siena
The Siena Saints are in the midst of a turnaround campaign in 2019, currently standing at 9-5 overall and 5-1 in the MAAC one year after posting a 1-7 tally in league play.
 
Three days after challenging the MAAC's highest-scoring offense, Fairfield will tackle the second-most potent attack in the conference. The Saints are averaging 12.21 goals per game, including 17 markers scored against both Canisius and Iona during MAAC play. Individually, the Siena offense is led by 51 points from Nicole McNeely, who has racked up 35 goals and 16 assists. Reigning MAAC Rookie of the Year Kerry Gerety ranks second in the MAAC with 23 assists (tied with Gallagher) en route to 50 points of her own, and Kaitlyn Dowsett shares the team high with McNeely with 35 markers.

Defensively, the Saints are also paced by one of the MAAC's top performers. One of just three seniors on the Saints' roster, Sammy Horton has played all but nine minutes in the cage for Siena, posting a MAAC-best .513 save percentage with a 9.52 goals-against average. She has made a conference-high 139 saves with 132 goals allowed.

All-Time Series (Fairfield leads 22-2)
The Stags have won their last five meetings with Siena to open up a 22-2 lead in the all-time series. In addition to the annual meeting as part of the MAAC regular season, the clubs met in the MAAC Championship Semifinals in both 2010 and 2012, with the Stags emerging victorious in both postseason encounters.

Up Next
Fairfield will conclude the regular season next week with back-to-back home games on Conway Field at Rafferty Stadium. First up, the Stags welcome Iona on Wednesday, April 17 for a 3 p.m. opening draw.