FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Thursday was an emotional night for the Fairfield University Women's Basketball team as the program not only honored the hard work and dedication of their four-member senior class but also clinched the MAAC Regular Season Championship with a 62-49 victory over Siena. The victory boosts the Stags' conference record to a perfect 19-0 and improves their winning streak to 42-straight games against MAAC foes. The Stags will be the top-seed in the upcoming MAAC Championships after winning the regular season crown for the second-straight season.
 
"The first word that comes to mind is love," graduate student guard Izabela Nicoletti Leite said. "I lost the love of the game but I found it here at Fairfield. Just sitting here being next to the people that I love, playing the game I love, having my family here, it's just been so much fun."
 
"It's pretty special to win the championship on your home floor on Senior Night," Head Coach Carly Thibault-DuDonis said. "It was a great crowd and to see them do it in a way that just showed their grit and toughness and resilience was special. I'm really proud of these seniors. I'm really proud of this group, but I know we've still got a lot more to accomplish."
 
Three Stags (25-3; 19-0 MAAC) netted double-figures in the win led by Meghan Andersen's 16 points while also draining three 3-pointers.
 
Andersen's first triple led off the scoring of the game and ignited a 10-0 run over the first 3:22 of the contest. Nicoletti Leite capped the run and forced a Siena timeout with another 3-pointer.
 
The Fairfield lead would be cut to just three points at the end of the first half but the Stags responded by outscoring the Saints 30-20 in the second half.
 
Andersen hit another long-range shot to increase the Fairfield lead to seven while starting a 9-0 run for the squad and ballooned the lead to 42-31.
 
The Stags would put the game out of reach with a 12-0 run in the fourth with back-to-back 3-pointers by Kaety L'Amoreaux and Kendall McGruder.
 
The Fairfield defense held an opponent to fewer than 50 points for the 13th time this season while holding the Saints to a .333 field goal percentage. Fairfield also held Siena's leading scorer Teresa Seppala without a point for the first time in her three-year career.
 
With the win, the Stags clinch the MAAC Regular Season title outright for the second-straight season and the sixth time in program history. Fairfield's 42-game winning streak against MAAC opponents is the fourth-longest active streak in the nation and the second-longest in conference history.
 
Fairfield will close out the regular season and look for another perfect 20-0 conference record when they make the short trip to Quinnipiac to play the Bobcats on Saturday at 4pm.