FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Fairfield University men's soccer seemed to bring the magic it conjured up on the road last week to Lessing Field this evening. After posting victories at Brown and Colgate away from campus, the Stags brought forth that same offensive and defensive wizardry into tonight's match with LIU, leading to an impressive 3-1 win over the Sharks.

The result added to Fairfield's modest winning streak which moved to three straight victories over non-conference foes, the program's longest out of conference run since defeating Yale, UMass, and UMass Lowell consecutively in the 2013 campaign. While the team's success can be drawn from several factors, Head Coach Carl Rees quickly points to role play.

"I think we have a defined style of play now," Coach Rees said. "When you have to think less about what your role is, you can focus 100 percent on your performance. The (LIU) coaches complimented the guys and said we deserved it because we worked hard. That's our culture and that's what we will continue to do."

The team's diligence was apparent from the opening as the Stags quickly built momentum up front, causing LIU to play a more defensive posture against Fairfield's aggression in the offensive third. The home side applied pressure immediately, taking three shots in the first three minutes. LIU tried to counter several times but the Fairfield back line moved forward which resulted in a pair of offside calls.

Fairfield found the back of the net in the 31^st minute on a stellar play by Joseph Stocchetti, who has just come on the pitch as a reserve a few minutes earlier. He controlled the ball at the top left corner of the box and sent a cross that seemed to overshoot everyone. Everyone that is except Tyler Reavis who made an incredible run that resulted in a sliding kick that sent the ball to the top corner for a 1-0 lead.

Just four minutes later, Juan Pablo Leano found open space near the goal line just off the right post. He twirled around to face the goal and sent the ball to the middle of the box where Brett Sieg continued to send the ball on its way to the far post where Thomas Drillien collected it and sent it to the back of the net, spotting the Stags a 2-0 lead.

Facing a two-goal deficit at the start of the second half, LIU pushed forward immediately by moving the ball down the flanks and sending the ball into the box. Fairfield's back line along with the play of goalkeeper Victor Nikolov was able to stay the waves of attack that the Sharks unleashed throughout the first 20 minutes of the half.

The visitors finally collected their first goal of the game in the 66^th minute when Robert Winkler crossed the ball to the right post where Andre Puente timed a run that ended with a header into the upper corner which cut the deficit in half, 2-1.

LIU continued to creep forward with the hopes of tying the game before time ran out. Fairfield began to counter the Sharks runs and relieved some of the pressure off the Stags' backs. On one of those counters, Raz Amir created a 2-on-1 opportunity that allowed him to find Kaea Rangihaeata cutting toward goal. The sophomore finished the scoring chance in the 88^th minute to seal the victory.
Nikolov made two saves in his debut to earn the victory in the starting role.

"I am so excited to play my first match with the team and for the win," Nikolov said. "It was a difficult match but we are fighters and did the same thing in our win against Colgate last Saturday. But we know we have to keep working especially with our first conference match on Saturday."

Fairfield will travel to Mount St. Mary's on September 16 for a 7 pm match, the team's Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference opener. The Stags will return to Lessing Field on Tuesday, September 19 for a non-conference match against Harvard University.