QU Field Hockey Runs Out Of Magic, Falls In MAAC Finals

Sunday, November 8

SO SWEET A CAT FIELD - WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J.

3:00 pm

Quinnipiac University

(9-11, 5-1MAAC)

Fairfield - MAAC Championship

(9-9, 3-3MAAC)

Fairfield

Quinnipiac

QU Field Hockey Runs Out Of Magic, Falls In MAAC Finals

11/8/2015 1:27:00 PM | Field Hockey

Box Score

By: QU Sports Information

WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. – The Fairfield field hockey team scored in the second minute of the game and held on the rest of the way to capture a 2-0 win over Quinnipiac on Sunday in the championship game of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Field Hockey Tournament at So Sweet A Cat Field on the campus of Monmouth University.

With the loss, Quinnipiac sees its season end at 9-11 overall after sharing the regular season MAAC title and finishing one win shy of advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the second time in the last three years. The Bobcats (5-1 MAAC) had won three of their five conference regular season games in overtime, including a 5-4 win over Fairfield in the finale, and earned a 3-2 win in the MAAC semifinals over Rider on a goal with no time left on the clock on Friday to advance to today's championship game.

Fairfield, which came in as the No. 4 seed in the four-team tournament and defeated both regular season co-champions (No. 1 Monmouth, No. 2 Quinnipiac) to earn the title, improves to 9-9 and will await its postseason assignment when the NCAA reveals its field this evening.

The Stags struck early on at the 1:50 mark before the Bobcats had a chance to settle in. A quick turnover in the defensive third allowed Fairfield to break in along the left side, where Ann Burgoyne sent a cross into the middle to Ruth Smalbraak, who cut back to her right past the last defender and put the ball in the back of the cage less than two minutes in.

The Bobcats were inches from an equalizer 18 minutes in as senior Haley Swartz (Downington, Pa. - pictured) took a shot from distance along the left side that was deflected by senior Savanna Reilly (Hamden, Conn.) and cleanly beat Fairfield goalie Caitlin Bennett, but it clanged off the post and stayed out. Late in the half, the Stags got the momentum back and earned a penalty corner, which resulted in a Julie de Paeuw goal from the left side when Kaitlyn Taddeo passed a short corner rather than pass for a stick stop at the top of the circle with 5:09 left in the first half to make the score 2-0.

Junior defender Angie King (South Windsor, Conn.) had a good chance to cut the Fairfield lead in half in the final seconds of the opening stanza, as she got a clean look off a penalty corner, but Bennett stepped off her line and made a clutch save to keep the score 2-0 into the break and keep the momentum on the Fairfield side.

Quinnipiac regrouped after intermission and put the Stags under heavy pressure early in the second half, including three penalty corners in the first five minutes. Bennett had her biggest save of the game on the third of those corners when she lunged to stop a King shot on a penalty corner that took a high deflection and was headed for the upper corner. Midway through the half, Bennett was prone on the ground but was able to stuff potential shot attempts from Reilly and sophomore forward Michelle Federico (Cheshire, Conn.) in traffic.

After a timeout with 18 minutes left, the Stags were able to relieve some of the pressure and get the ball down to their offensive end of the field in order to kill some clock. Swartz had several end-to-end rushes into the circle to try to generate a goal, but the Stags defense held stout, and the last chance at another late comeback went for naught as a diving effort from junior defender Lily Shemo (Luzerne, Pa.) scooted on the ground just wide of the left post.

Quinnipiac held a 12-10 edge in shots and an 8-4 edge in shots for the game, but Bennett had five saves for the Stags to give the Bobcats their first shutout since a loss to No. 1 UConn on Sept. 4. Senior Megan Conaboy (Clarks Summit, Pa.) had two saves for Quinnipiac.

Swartz and Reilly were named to the MAAC All-Tournament team for the Bobcats, along with sophomore midfielder Dayna Barlow (Port Elizabeth, South Africa).