FAIRFIELD, Conn. -- For most of the people at University Field, the heavy rain and windy conditions were not a pleasant experience. That wasn't the case for the Fairfield University field hockey team. For the Stags, the conditions were something that had seen earlier in the week and during preseason. Maybe that's why Head Coach Jackie Kane watched her team post their second come-from-behind win in as many games, defeating the University of Vermont by a 2-1 score.

"We were on the field practicing one during preseason and the skies just opened up all of a sudden," Coach Kane said. "It came down in sheets and it was so bad that the ball would just stop after a few feet. And then we were practicing earlier this week and it rained really hard too. I guess those two practices prepared us for the conditions today."

Dark overcast skies were what faced the team during warmups before intermittent rain started to fall in the first few minutes of the game. By the second quarter, the field showed standing water and the passes had trouble finding the sticks of players. It was during those conditions that Vermont found its way into the circle and converted its only shot of the game. Sydney Melfi made a terrific run down the right flank before turning into the circle on the far right side. She sent a ball to the middle of the circle which Fairfield goalkeeper Zoe Rosen was able to deflect but the ball landed right on the stick of Clodagh Ferry, who one-timed a shot into the open goal for a 1-0 lead.

The two teams went to the benches five minutes for halftime and the heavy rain seemed to come to an end during the 10-minute intermission. From the start of the second half, the Stags were aggressive and applied pressure up front that kept the visitors pinned in their end for a good part of the final two quarters. Over the 30 minutes of play, Fairfield would out shoot Vermont by a 9-0 count with two of those shots finding their target.

Fairfield took advantage of one of its nine penalty corners to score its first goal as Danielle Profita pass to the top of the circle found Malen Iglesias on the left side of the circle. She released a shot that caromed into the goal and tied the game with just under 10 minutes left in the third quarter. The two student-athletes would hook up again in the fourth quarter to score the deciding goal with under two minutes remaining in regulation. Iglesias sent the ball toward goal from almost the same spot she scored the team's first goal but this time it was Profita who was able to deflect the shot into the upper corner to push Fairfield in the lead.

By just looking at the stats, the Stags defense might seem to have had an easy day. But it was their play with support from the midfielders in the middle third that prevented Vermont from gaining any momentum or advantage. And when Vermont broke through, Rosen stepped up and deflected the ball away from danger. The 

"The defense knew to step to ball which eliminated opportunities," Coach Kane said. "We knew that they would want to get behind us so we had our defenders step up and disrupt play. It says a lot about the senior leadership we are getting from Emily Halderson, who continues to lead us in many ways."

With back-to-back wins on the ledger, Fairfield will turn its attention to St. Francis Pa. on Sunday when the Red Flash come to University for a noon game.