FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Fairfield University field hockey found its offensive stride on Sunday afternoon, picking up its second Northeast Conference (NEC) victory of the season with a 9-1 decision over Mercyhurst College. The goal total was the highest since the Stags beat LIU by a 10-0 count during the 2016 campaign.

The offense took some time to get in gear, pushing the ball forward regularly with a few shot attempts but did not really apply constant pressure later in the quarter. The Stags opened the scoring in the ninth minute when Erin McGinley posted her first goal of the afternoon by converting a penalty corner that was set up Alice Pifferi and Pilar Mengotti.

The Stags used a couple of quick strikes later in the quarter, scoring two goals just 76 seconds apart. Alex Senior posted the first of those two goals when she pushed back a rebound that caught the corner of the cage in the 13^th minute. McGinley followed with her second goal with 1:03 remaining in the quarter converting another penalty corner that was started by Pifferi.

After a scoreless second quarter kept the deficit at three goals going into the second half, Fairfield found its scorers touch once again in the third quarter with another three goals. Camille Perlov was the first beneficiary when McGinley sent the ball toward the goal where Perlov deflected it past the goalkeeper for a 4-0 advantage.

Just after that goal, Madison Milhous collected a pass from Catalina Ness and snuck the ball into the goal to improve the lead. Rylee LaLoup finished off the third quarter scoring with her own goal, collecting a pass from Sammy Saxon and beating the defense to the lower corner.

Mercyhurst finally broke through by scoring on its first shot of the game as a breakaway opportunity led Marina Evert to the goal that cut into the Fairfield lead with 2:45 remaining in the period.
But Fairfield answered once again with Konni Hoffman, Catherine Fitzgerald, and McGinley posting goals in a matter of three-plus minutes to bring the score to 9-1 in favor of the Stags. Catalina Ness had two of those assists with Mengotti earning the other set up.

Fairfield outshot Mercyhurst by a 34-2 margin and owned a 12-0 edge in penalty corners this afternoon. Mercyhurst goalkeeper Kayla Desormeau made 14 saves for the visitors while Fairfield goalkeeper Emily Streib was not forced to make any saves as she faced two shots in the game.

Next on the docker, the Fairfield University field hockey team will play a pair of NEC games next weekend beginning with a road game against LIU on Friday, October 11 before hosting Merrimack College on Sunday, October 13. The home game will be played at University Field beginning at 1 pm.