FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Fairfield University Women's Soccer team has announced their All-Decade team which was chosen 100 percent by fan voting. The voting consisted of over 6,000 submissions and spanned impact student-athletes from across the decade.
 
 
Starting XI
 
 
Goalkeeper: Kelly Boudreau (2008-11)
 
Boudreau completed her four-year stay by competing in two seasons in the decade, earning the MAAC Defensive Player of the Year and MAAC Goalkeeper of the Year awards in 2011. That season she led the conference in goals against average (0.63) and save percentage (.865). Her 0.63 goals against average was the second best in a single season in program history, finishing just short of Boudreau's 2008 campaign. She is Fairfield's all-time leader in shutouts (36), tied in saves (396), second in goals against average (0.89), third in wins (36).
 
 
Defensive Backs: Emma Pichl (2011-14)
 
The top vote getter for any position, Emma Pichl appeared in nearly 75 percent of all ballots. An anchor to Fairfield's back line, Pichl earned the MAAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2013 and helped the Stags to a 0.77 goals against average, ranking in the top-50 in the country. She also earned All-MAAC First Team honors in 2013 and helped the Stags earn a spot in the MAAC Championship Match in 2014.
 
Megan O'Brien (2011-14)
 
Another member of the Stags' backline in the early part of the decade, O'Brien helped the Stags to a sub-1.00 goals against average every season. She earned two All-MAAC Second Team selections, being named to the team in 2012 and 2014. She also scored three goals and had three assists in her career.
 
Anna Borea (2013-16)
 
Borea was also named to a pair of All-MAAC Second Teams earning the distinction in 2014 and 2016. She helped the Stags to nine shutouts during the 2014 campaign where the Stags went 8-2 in MAAC play and earned a spot in the MAAC Championship match. She scored seven goals in her career from the defensive position and was named to the MAAC All-Tournament team in 2014.
 
Alli Walsh (2009-12)
 
Walsh was a two-time All-MAAC First Team honoree after winning the conference's Defensive Player of the Year award in 2012. That season, she helped the Stags become the best defensive team in the conference as they surrendered just 15 goals while maintaining a 0.80 goals against average. She was also named to the NSCAA All-Northeast Region Second Team in 2012 after helping the defense to 10 shutouts, the 20th best number in the country.
 
 
Midfielders: Nikki Stanton (2009-13)
 
Stanton was the only Stag in the decade to earn three All-MAAC First Team honors between 2011-13. She earned regional recognition in 2013 being named to the NSCAA All-Northeast First Team after leading the team with seven assists. She became the first Stag to play professionally in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), appearing for Sky Blue and the Chicago Red Stars.
 
Michelle Kowalski (2011-14)
 
A team captain during the 2014 season, Kowalski was named to the All-MAAC First Team after that campaign after helping the Stags to a spot in the MAAC Championship Final. During that season, she helped the defense to a 0.86 goals against average while recording nine shutouts. She scored three goals in her career, including the tally that proved to be the game-winner in the program's 250th all-time victory.
 
Gabby Diodati (2017-pres)
 
Diodati was named a team captain entering her junior season and had one of the most decorated seasons in Stags' history. She tied for the MAAC lead with eight assists and also placed fourth in the conference with 18 points. Her biggest moment came in the MAAC Semifinals against Quinnipiac where she netted the game-winning goal in a 1-0 Fairfield victory. She was name to the All-MAAC First Team last season and also earned a spot on the All-Region Third Team and the United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-East Second Team.
 
Faith Daley (2014-17)
 
In the closest vote on the ballot, Daley was named to the Fairfield All-Decade team by a single vote. A team captain during her senior season, Daley started 60 matches during her career while picking up seven points on two goals and three assists. She was named to the All-MAAC Rookie Team in 2014, being the main freshman contributor to a team that advanced to the MAAC Championship match. After suffering an injury during the 2014 playoffs, Daley fought back to appear in 18 matches for the Stags the next season.
 
Forwards: Ashley Small (2011-14)
 
Small tallied the most goals of any Stag over the decade notching 25 scores, tying for the ninth most all-time. Her best season came in 2013 when she led the squad with 13 goals, the fourth most in a single season in program history. She was named to the All-MAAC First Team after that season and notched seven game-winning goals, including in the MAAC Semifinals against Siena
 
Lauren Reilly (2009-12)
 
Reilly led the team in both goals (six) and points (13) in 2012 in helping the Stags capture the 2012 regular season title. She was named to the All-MAAC First Team and the NSCAA All-Northeast First Team following that campaign. She finished her career with a hat trick in her final home game, the first hat trick for the Stags of the decade.
 
 
Bench
 
 
Goalkeeper: Kathleen Early (2011-14)
 
Early remains the program's all-time leader in goals against average, surrendering just 0.75 goals in her career. She had back-to-back seasons allowing fewer that 1.00 goals a game, recording a 0.69 average in 2013 and a 0.74 average in 2014. She was named to the All-MAAC First Team in 2014 after finishing second in the league in goals against average and third in save percentage (.812). She was at the forefront of one of the most memorable moments in the decade after stopping three-straight penalty kicks in a shootout against Niagara to bring the Stags to the Championship Match.
 
Defensive Back: Karolyn Collins (2011-14)
 
Collins was one of the Stags' best all-around defender of the decade recording 12 assists and netting six goals. She led the MAAC with seven assists in 2014 and was named to the All-MAAC Second Team for the second-straight season.  
 
Midfielder: Erin Pettersen (2011-14)
 
Pettersen started 17 games in her sophomore season on a Stags team that would win the MAAC regular season title in 2012. She finished third on the team with eight points and was named to the All-MAAC Second Team. She netted seven goals with four assists in her career.
 
Forward: Brenna Brown (2013-16)
 
Brown is the only Stag in history to receive CoSida Academic All-District First Team honors in back-to-back seasons, attaining the feat in 2015 and 16. She led the Stags with six goals in 2016 and was named to the All-MAAC Second Team. She ended her career on a high note, scoring the game-winning goal against Rider in the final minute in her final home game.
 
 
Fan's Choice
 
Defensive Back: Melanie Hingher (2017-20)
 
Hingher just recently completed her four-year career as a Stag and was named a two-year captain. As a defensive back, she controlled the Fairfield defense in her 62 career starts as a staple on the field. She netted five goals in her career, the final two coming against Iona on her Senior Night. Hingher was chosen as the fan's choice honoree after receiving the most write-in votes.