NEW HAVEN, Conn. – In a hard-fought and physical contest, the Fairfield University Women's Basketball team came up short in a 68-61 battle at Yale. Janelle Brown was the sparkplug in Fairfield's tenacious effort with a career-high 21 points and a personal-best six steals. Brown's gritty defense helped the Stags force 20 Yale turnovers.
 
The Stags struggled shooting from the floor in the first half but was able to stay in the game with their success on the line. Fairfield connected on nine of their first 10 attempts from the free throw line, helping to withstand a 6-for-26 shooting performance from the field in the first 20 minutes.
 
Yale led by as many as 11 points in the second quarter before Brooke Tatarian muscled through her first career field goal to put the score at 26-17. That would start a 6-0 run for the Stags which featured a pair of free throws from Tatarian and Brown.
 
Fairfield also stayed in the game with their tenacity on the defensive end which resulted in 11 Yale turnovers. Brown was at the forefront of that defensive intensity with two steals in the first half including a swipe and fast break lineup to end the first quarter.
 
The Stags would continue their defensive success in the third quarter by forcing five turnovers in the first five minutes.
 
Fairfield would also find their shooting touch with a 6-2 run that cut the Yale lead to six at 36-30. Callie Cavanaugh tallied four-straight points during that stretch including a long two-pointer that started the run.
 
The Stags would connect on a 3-pointer in the next two possessions with Mimi Rubino and Brown each swishing through a triple. Brown's long-range connection put Fairfield down three at 41-38.
 
That would be the closest the Stags would come as Yale opened up their advantage by out-scoring Fairfield 19-12 in the first few minutes of the final quarter. Brown's tenacious defense almost set up a last-minute chance for the Stags as her sixth steal gave Fairfield the ball with under a minute to go.
 
Brown set career-bests in points (21) and steals (six) while going a perfect 7-for-7 from the line. The reigning MAAC Player of the Week, Cavanaugh, entered double figures for the third-straight game with 14 points on 6-for-14 shooting. Tatarian also provided 18 valuable minutes off the bench with a personal best eight points on 6-for-6 shooting at the free throw line.
 
As a team, the Stags would go 19-for-23 from the charity stripe.
 
Fairfield will now head back home for the long-awaited opening of the brand new on-campus Leo D. Mahoney Arena as they welcome Stonehill for the historic game on Friday night at 7pm.