LOUDONVILLE, N.Y. – A matchup between the top two teams in the Metro Conference standings lived up to its billing on Saturday afternoon as Fairfield University Volleyball powered past host Siena, 3-2. The Stags were fueled by a career day from
Mamie Krubally with 27 kills on .545 hitting for the Metro's Preseason Player of the Year.
With the win, the Stags reach the halfway point in the conference slate at 9-0 as a part of a 15-5 overall mark. Siena is an even 11-11 with a 6-3 Metro record. Fairfield took the match by set scores of 21-25, 25-14, 19-25, 25-22, and 15-12.
Krubally set a new career mark with 27 kills, surpassing her 22 from the Oct. 3 win over Merrimack. She hit .545 this afternoon, needing only 44 swings and committing just three errors en route to her total. Her 27 kills were the most by a Stag since KJ Johnson had 28 in a 3-2 win over Niagara on Oct. 23, 2021.
Krubally had four kills in each of the first three sets and then tallied 15 of her 27 in the final two frames. She put down nine in Set 4 to force a fifth frame and then going 6-for-7 in Set 5 to close out the contest.
"Mamie was outstanding today. Twenty-seven kills is tremendous on its own, but the way she delivered down the stretch is what go-to players do. She answered the call when we needed her the most," said Head Coach
Nancy Somera. "But as with all close matches, it wasn't just one player. We had kills from eight players and digs from 10. That's how you grind out wins against tough opponents. Everybody does their job when their number is called."
A pair of freshmen joined the senior Krubally in double figures;
Julie Dufourt tallied a career-high 16 points and
Aislin Oldach put down 13. In the middle,
Harlan Wyche and
Sophia Nagy finished with eight and five kills, respectively.
Emma Bortolotti chipped in four kills, and
Katelyn Cook had three prior to donning the libero jersey for the final two frames.
Zofia Sykut had two kills from the setter spot, including the match-winner on a diving dig that soared over the net and found the floor to seal the win.
Sykut dished out a career-best 49 assists running the attack and set a new career standard with 15 digs.
Noella Migliuri added 11 assists and Cook had a career-high seven. The setting corps led the Stags to a .309 hitting percentage.
Fairfield had six points from the end line, headed by three from Sykut and back-to-back winners to close out the second set by Wyche. Dufourt also landed one for a point off the serving game.
Natalie Carlin led the back row with 17 digs, followed by Sykut's 15. Cook added 14 and Dufourt picked up 10 to finish off a double-double. Migliuri added nine from the back for the second straight day.
At the net, Wyche and Nagy each had a hand in three of Fairfield's six blocks. Krubally and Bortolotti were each a part of two send backs.
Siena was led by 24 kills on 66 swings from Mary Claire Deacy. Abby Edwards dished 46 assists for the Saints, and libero Brooke Malek led all players with 20.
Up next, the second half of the Metro slate begins at Leo D. Mahoney Arena when the Stags host Manhattan on Friday, Oct. 23 and Iona on Saturday, Oct. 24. Admission is free for all fans to all Fairfield Volleyball home matches this season.
