FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Fairfield University Volleyball finished off the non-conference portion of the 2021 schedule on Tuesday evening with a 3-1 victory over visiting Bryant. KJ Johnson and Manuela Nicolini both posted double-doubles, and Luci Albertson racked up 10 blocks as the Stags took the contest by set scores of 25-22, 25-15, 26-28 and 25-19.
 
With the win, Fairfield will enter MAAC play with a record of 5-6. The Bulldogs also stand at 5-6 following the midweek clash at the RecPlex.
 
"I'm glad we able to come back with a short turnaround after a very sloppy match on Saturday night [at Sacred Heart] and beat a quality team like Bryant tonight," said Head Coach Todd Kress. "I thought we played decently; our hitting percentage and side-out percentage were in a good spot. Obviously, we let the foot off the gas a bit and didn't take advantage of some opportunities to finish in Set 3, so those are things we've got to clean up, but we will."
 
Johnson's double-double consisted of a match-high 25 kills on .322 hitting along with 12 digs. The MAAC leader in kills and points also got a piece of four blocks and handed out two assists. On the season, Johnson has recorded 4.41 kills per set on .305 hitting.
 
Nicolini managed the Fairfield attack to a .264 clip this evening, dishing out 50 assists to go along with four kills of her own. The graduate student also notched 11 digs and got a piece of four blocks.
 
Also sparking the attack were Joelle Battles with 10 kills and Laura Seeger with nine.

Fairfield racked up 13 blocks in all – 10 of which featured Albertson, including one solo send-back. Albertson, who also had eight kills tonight, last reached double-digit blocks when she had a career-high 11 as a part of a double-double in the 2019 MAAC Championship Match. This fall, she is the only player in the MAAC averaging over one block per set this season, posting 41 rejections in 39 frames of work.
 
Johnson and Nicolini were two of four Stags to reach double-digit digs, as the tandem of Kyla Berg and Georgia Via recorded 18 and 14, respectively, from the back row. In total, the Fairfield defensive effort limited Bryant to a .153 hitting percentage.
 
The Stags also saw strong contributions from a pair of freshmen. Dominique Browder got the start in the middle and posted a kill and two blocks, and Mikayla Haut entered the fray for the final two sets and added four kills on .375 hitting with an ace and a block.
 
"We wanted to give Dom a chance in the middle tonight, and she had some quality block touches, made herself available in transition and did all of the things we asked her to do," noted Kress. "And for Mikayla, I put her on the right side to give them a different look on the block, but she also hit some nice shots and scored some big points when we needed them down the stretch."
 
Fairfield Volleyball is back at the RecPlex this weekend to begin the 18-match MAAC slate on Sept. 18-19 against Rider and Saint Peter's. The Broncs, who are the defending MAAC Champions, are 2-7 on the heels of their challenging non-league ledger. Saint Peter's is 1-10 with a trip to Quinnipiac on deck prior to their visit to Fairfield.
 
Fans who plan to attend this weekend's matches are reminded that masks are required for all visitors in all indoor facilities on campus.