Entering his third season with the Stags, John Lagerfeldt has turned the Stags into one of the most aggressive and successful base running teams in the conference.
In his two full seasons, the Stags have stolen 195 bases, the most by the program in back-to-back seasons since the 1976-77 campaigns. Fairfield’s 100 swipes in 2026 and 95 steals in 2025 both rank in the top-five in program history.
The speed has been up and down the Stags’ lineup with five student-athletes tallying at least 15 steals. TJ Schmalzle’s 25 swipes, ranking seventh in program history.
Lagerfeldt also had an impact on the defense of the Stags, with Fairfield holding a .972 fielding percentage during his stay, the highest in a two-year span in program history.
Lagerfeldt brought four years of coaching experience with stops at Greenville University and the University of Bridgeport.
He spent the last two seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Bridgeport where he was responsible for implementing the team’s offensive approach. Last season, the Purple Knights averaged 5.6 runs per game while tallying 118 extra base hits including 35 homers. He also coached baserunning, infield defense, as well as first and third base.
Lagerfeldt started his coaching journey with two seasons at Greenville University in Illinois. With the Panthers, he was also responsible for coaching hitting, infield defense, and baserunning. While implementing a “New School” baserunning system, he helped increase the team’s stolen base count by 26 bags, totaling 92 in his final season. He also designed the team’s year-round strength and conditioning program and produced opposing team scouting reports.
Lagerfeldt graduated from Gordon College where he was a four-year infielder for the Fighting Scots.
