SETTING THE TABLE
In a rematch of the regular season finale for both sides, No. 4 Fairfield University women's lacrosse will take on No. 5 Canisius in the opening round of the 2022 MAAC women's lacrosse championships Saturday afternoon. Opening draw between the Stags and the Golden Griffins is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. from Conway Field at Rafferty Stadium.
SCOUTING THE STAGS
Fairfield concluded the regular season with a 10-6 record on the year, including five wins in conference play. The Stags' have now reached double digit wins in four of the last five seasons under head coach Laura Field, with the lone exception being the Pandemic shortened 2020 season where they played just seven games before the season was cancelled. Four players were named to 2022 All-MAAC rosters for their play in the regular season, on a team that has spread the workload both offensively and defensively all season long.
Elizabeth Talluto leads the Fairfield offensive into the postseason after scoring a team-best 60 points on the year, scoring 41 goals in addition to 19 assists, averaging the fifth-best points per game total in the MAAC. Rylee Harrell sits behind Talluto in scoring with 35 goals followed by co-captain Kelly Horning with 33 goals in addition to 13 assists for 46 points. The Stags have spread the wealth all season long, with six different players scoring 20 or more goals, and two other players just outside of that group. Olivia Doody has led the assist numbers with 24 in addition to 14 goals and Ellie Grefenstette has dished out 22 helpers while also finding the back of the net 21 times.
On defense, LaVista has corralled a team-high 85 draw controls, nearly double the next best mark, that being 47 controls by Horning, who leads the team in ground balls with 39 and leads all active Division I players in ground balls for a career. She has also caused the most turnovers of any Stag, forcing 30, and is the current program record holder in both ground balls and forced turnovers.
FOUR STAGS CLAIM ALL-MAAC HONORS AHEAD OF MAAC QUARTERFINALS
Ahead of opening round of the 2022 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championships tomorrow, four members of the Fairfield University women's lacrosse team earned All-MAAC nominations Friday afternoon. The Stags' 2022 co-captains Kelly Horning and Caroline Mangan highlighted the group earning First Team accolades, while both Elizabeth Talluto and Nicollette LaVista nabbed Second Team honors.
SCOUTING THE GOLDEN GRIFFINS
Canisius enters the postseason after compiling a 10-5 record in the regular season, including 5-3 in MAAC contests. Skylar McArthur leads the Griffs with 46 goals on the year, ahead of Paige Stachura scoring 40. A two-way threat for the offense was Katie Smolensky who scored 25 goals, while leading the team in assists with 29. Defensively Stachura led the team in draw controls with 48, just ahead of McArthur with 42. 12 players have corralled at least 10 ground balls on the year, led by Stachura, who also paced the team with 18 caused turnovers in the regular season.
PLAYOFF PICTURE
Monmouth and Siena both ended the regular season with a 6-2 record in MAAC play to claim the MAAC regular season title, with Monmouth taking a head-to-head tie breaker over the Saints to claim the No. 1 overall seed. Niagara claimed the No. 3 seed with a 5-3 record, followed by the Stags in the No. 4 spot. Canisius earned the No. 5 seed in the tournament, followed by No. 6 Manhattan to round out the 2022 bracket. Teams will be reseeded following quarterfinal action Saturday, which will take place in Loudonville, N.Y. at Siena.
LOOKING AHEAD
The winners of today's two opening round games will join top seeded Monmouth and No. 2 seed Siena in the semifinals on Friday, May 6 at Siena.
