MINNEAPOLIS – Fairfield University Volleyball concluded the 2025 season on Friday with a 3-0 loss to #17 Minnesota in the NCAA Championship First Round inside Maturi Pavilion in Minneapolis. The Stags cap their third consecutive MAAC Championship campaign with a record of 25-6.
"I thought we took too long to get going. When we passed well and stayed in system, we looked like ourselves and held our own," said Head Coach
Nancy Somera. "But our passing breakdowns caught up with us, and Minnesota knew how to take advantage of them."
The Stags were led offensively by seven kills from
Allie Elliott – a Minnesota native playing in her final collegiate match.
Mamie Krubally added six kills ta a .357 clip from the right side, and
Maya Walker capped her outstanding career with five kills on .500 hitting in the middle.
Lindsey Healey added four kills,
Harlan Wyche and
Emma Bortolotti each had two, and
Katelyn Cook put down one.
The offense was managed by
Abby Jandro – a senior from Lakeville, Minnesota – and
Zofia Sykut with 13 and 12 assists, respectively.
In the back row,
Delaney Moon had a team-leading eight digs. The Stags put down on block against the Gophers – a triple send-back by Walker, Bortolotti, and Cook.
Minnesota (23-9) powered its way into the Second Round on .582 hitting. The Gophers were led by 13 kills from Julia Hanson and seven apiece for Lourdes Myers and Carly Gilk. Stella Swenson dished out 31 assists for the Gophers.
Minnesota opened the match on a 5-0 run and quickly built a 7-1 advantage before the Stags put together back-to-back points on a Cook kill and a triple block from Bortolotti, Cook, and Walker. After a Gophers' point, Fairfield strung two together again with a service error and Elliott's first kill of the day to make it a 9-5 tally. But the four-point deficit was the closest that Fairfield would get for the remainder of the set as the hosts opened up a 19-9 advantage en route to closing out the opening frame, 25-12.
The Stags took an early 3-1 lead in the second frame on kills from Krubally, Wyche, and Walker, but Minnesota soon closed the gap and flipped the momentum out to a 7-4 edge. Two separate 8-0 runs for the Gophers then put the set out of the reach, ending at 25-7 in favor of the home team.
Fairfield crept out to another 3-1 lead in Set 3 and this time maintained its cushion out to a 7-5 advantage. At that point, the Gophers used a four-point run to gain the lead. A pair of Healey kills kept the Stags in striking distance for the next stretch of rallies, put Minnesota used an 8-1 run to break the set open and went on to close out the frame, 25-13, and the match by a 3-0 count.
Fairfield Volleyball's 2025 season marked the program's third consecutive MAAC Championship and the 15th in program history. The Stags also won their 24th MAAC Regular Season Championship and are the only team in the nation to win seven consecutive outright regular season titles (no divisions, no ties). Fairfield was appearing in its 15th NCAA postseason.
Fairfield's three graduating seniors – Elliott, Jandro, and Walker – all wrap up their careers with their names in the program record books. Elliott finishes 17th all-time with 1,059 digs and just shy of the 1,000 Kills Club with 997. She is also one of just seven three-time All-MAAC First Team honorees in Fairfield Volleyball history.
Jandro completes her four-year career ranked 11th in assists with 1,706.
Walker will etch her name second in career blocks (432) and third in career attack percentage (.357). She and
Harlan Wyche tied for the team lead this season with 126 blocks apiece, which shares sixth on the single-season list.
"This is a great tram and a great group of people. It takes a lot of hard work from these student-athletes and our coaching staff to be successful and to win a championship – and most of these players have won two or three in a row," added Somera. "I think we're all going to be a little sad that we won't be back in the gym together for a while. But 25-6 is nothing to hang our heads about, and we're very proud of all that we accomplished this season."
