LOUDONVILLE, NY – The Siena Saints met the only undefeated team in the MAAC and preseason favorite Fairfield on Wednesday night, as the Stags would top the Saints at the UHY Center by a final of 3-0 (25-18, 25-17, 25-16).
 
"Fairfield is a very good program and that showed tonight," said head coach Vilis Ozols. "I was pleased with how our team was able to play at their level in patches. That's optimistic for our future, particularly when we get to the point of sustaining that level of play."
 
Graduate student Emily Wunder had a standout performance, putting down 15 kills on the evening with a .520 attack percentage, while sophomore Meghan Johnsson collected a double-double with 27 assists and 10 digs. Maddy Dunigan and Olga Sawinska also had six kills apiece.
 
Fairifield's KJ Johnson smacked 13 kills and had eight digs to lead the Stags effort. Laura Seeger and Mikayla Haut had eight kills apiece, as Manuela Nicolini ran the offense to 31 total assists. Libero Kyla Berg led the Stags with 14 digs, and Emily Schillinger had a hand in seven blocks, including four solo blocks.
 
The first set was all Fairfield early, as they jumped to a 6-0 lead. But the Saints chipped away, and brought it to within two points at 11-9. Siena would keep the score within reach for most of the set, as they trailed 20-16. From there, a trio of points by the Stags made it 23-16 to give Fairfield enough cushion to hold on for the 25-18 win.
 
Wunder would find her stride in the second set for Siena, despite Fairfield controlling play to a 19-11 lead. The Saints would then score on six of the next seven rallies which included three kills from Wunder to cut the lead to 20-17. However, the Stags would score five points in a row to end the set. The third would be much of the same, as Fairfield took an early lead. The Saints would battle back to within three points at 15-12, before the Stags pulled away for the 25-16 win to finish off the match.
 
The Saints return to action this Saturday, Oct. 16 when they head to Poughkeepsie to take on Marist at 1 p.m.