FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Fairfield University Men's Lacrosse jumped out to a 6-0 lead over visiting Wagner and never looked back on Saturday on Conway Field at Rafferty Stadium. The lead never shrank to less than three, with a 7-0 run later in the game putting the contest out of reach as the Stags rolled to a 16-9 lead to notch their first win of the 2022 campaign.
 
With the victory, Fairfield improves to 1-1 on the year. Wagner falls to 0-1.
 
"This was a pretty complete performance. In particular, in the first and third quarters we came out and showed our brand of lacrosse," said Head Coach Andrew Baxter. "We did a lot of things well that we've been working on in practice. Obviously, there were also some lapses that we'll use as teaching moments, but that's how it is early in the season."

The scoring was led by Taylor Strough, who netted all of his game-high five goals in the first half as the Stags built a 10-4 lead at the break. Strough's first goal marked the 100th point of his Fairfield career.
 
Mike Drake also had a five-point day with a goal and four assists, and Jack McKenna posted a career-best four goals with two goals and two helpers.
 
Rounding out the scoring were Bryce Ford and Max Paparozzi with two goals apiece, Kyle Borda with a goal and an assist, and the trio of Shane Osborne, Frankie Labetti and Luke Okupsi each netting one.
 
Labetti also went 11-for-18 at the faceoff X with eight ground balls. Ryan Hamburger added a 7-for-11 performance to push the Stags to an 18-11 advantage on the draw.
 
Defensively, Braden Lynch scooped up six ground balls, and Caleb McNaull posted two grounders and a pair of caused turnovers in his first career start on close defense. Daniel Wilson also picked up a pair of ground balls as the Stags' starter as the LSM spot.
 
Colin Consoli played the first 48 minutes in the cage to earn the win, making six saves with six goals allowed. James Corasaniti completed the effort and stopped a pair of Wagner offerings.
 
In total, 35 Stags checked into the game to contribute to the win.
 
"Overall, we have a young roster and we're still learning how to perform in winning moments," Baxter noted. "That's what we emphasized in the huddles today. There are certain situations that we're going to see down the stretch, and the execution needs to be the same whether we're up by ten goals or up by one or down by one, So I'm glad that so many of our guys got experience with that today."
 
The Stags are back in action next Saturday, Feb. 26 at Villanova. The Wildcats, who opened their season with a 13-12 win at Penn State, dropped a 17-14 decision to Yale this afternoon in New Haven to fall to 1-1.
 
After midweek trip to Sacred Heart on Tuesday, March 1, the Stags return to Rafferty Stadium on Saturday, March 5 to host Harvard at 1 p.m.