FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Faced with a 2-0 deficit to visiting St. John's on Wednesday evening at the RecPlex, Fairfield University Volleyball Head Coach
Todd Kress saw the avenue for the Stags to start their rally.
"The first two sets were 25-23 and 25-22, so we knew if we cleaned up some things as far as execution and defensive intensity that we were right there," said Kress. "We talked in the huddle after Set 2 about how we can't win the match in Set 3, but let's take a set, keep them on the court and wear them out. The longer the match went on, the more we were able to dictate play."
Fairfield (5-2) responded to the eight-time MAAC Coach of the Year and kept the Red Storm on the court for a third, a fourth and ultimately a fifth frame as the Stags rallied to knock off St. John's (3-4) by a score of 3-2 (23-25, 22-25, 25-17, 25-15 and 15-11).
The win was the fourth in a row for the Stags and the second straight against a Big East foe following Sunday's 3-2 win at Villanova in the Villanova Classic Championship Match.
In tonight's outing, it was the MVP of that tournament who once again led the way as
KJ Johnson neared her first-ever triple-double with 13 kills, 10 digs and a career-high nine blocks. Johnson was one of four Stags to reach double digit kills, including
Allie Elliott setting a pair of new personal bests with 12 kills and a team-leading 15 digs.
Mikayla Haut and
Sabria Cooper each added 11 kills to round out the quartet, with
Sara Daniels adding nine on .436 hitting,
Maya Walker putting down four on 11 errorless swings (.364) and
Ella Gardiner adding a pair in one set of action.
The attack was run to a .277 hitting percentage by
Blakely Montgomery and
Abby Jandro with 32 and 25 assists, respectively. Montgomery also posted nine digs with Jandro pitching in seven.
Defensively, Fairfield's 14 blocks matched the most ceded by the Red Storm this season and the Stags out-blocked St. John's – with all six starters standing at 6-1 or taller – by a count of 14-6. In addition to Johnson getting a piece of nine rejections,
Sara Daniels had seven, Walker got a part of a career-high five, and Cooper played a role in four sendbacks.
In the back row, Elliott's 15 digs headed an effort that also saw
Kyla Berg rack up 14 and Johnson record 10. All told, the Stags' defensive effort limited St. John's to a .114 hitting percentage.
"This group came out and decided that they were going to fight for each other, it's as simple of that," said Kress. "This is a special group and they don't want to let each other down, and I think we saw the culmination of that in the final three sets tonight. There was nothing to lose at that point, so they just went out determined to not let a ball get past them or drop in front of them."
Reigning co-Big East Offensive Player of the Year Rachele Rastelli led the Red Storm with 17 kills, with Lucrezia Lodi adding 16 and Giorgia Walthier posting 10. Wiktoria Kowalczyk had a match-best 42 assists for the visitors, and Bree Martin led all players with 16 digs.
Tonight's 2022 home opener was the start of a five-match week at the RecPlex. The Stags will play host to the Fairfield Invitational from Sept. 8-11 with matches on tap against Fairleigh Dickinson, Washington State, High Point and Howard.
