Fairfield, CT - The Wagner women's lacrosse team, champions of the Northeast Conference (NEC) for the second straight year and third time in the last four seasons, will travel to Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) champion Fairfield at Rafferty Stadium on Tuesday, May 7 at 3:00 p.m. in a game that will be streamed live on ESPN3.com.
Clash of 15-3 Teams
The matchup between the Seahawks and the Stags, a pair of teams with matching 15-3 records, is an NCAA Opening-Round game with the winner set to travel to Princeton (14-3) for a meeting with the Ivy League champion Tigers, who will be making their 27th NCAA tournament appearance and seventh straight. The Seahawks' 15 wins are a program record for most wins in a season.
Seahawk Head Coach Michelle Tumolo On the Matchup
"We are thrilled to be in this year's NCAA Tournament and look forward to competing against an extremely talented Fairfield team," said Wagner first-year head coach
Michelle Tumolo. "Our players are grateful for this opportunity. As a program, we're excited that our first opponent is just a 90-minute drive away, which will allow many family, friends and Seahawk fans a chance to support us in person."
Two Straight NEC Titles, Three in Last Four Seasons
After claiming the program's first-ever NEC title in 2016, Wagner won it again in 2018 before repeating this season with a 7-6 victory at top-seeded Mount St. Mary's on Saturday.
Wagner's NEC Tournament Road to the NCAA
The Seahawks are riding a six-game winning streak and have won 12 of their last 13 games heading into the NCAA Tournament as the NEC's automatic qualifier. In a 14-13 win over Robert Morris in the NEC semifinals on March 2, the Seahawks trailed 8-7 at the midway point, but used a strong second half to advance to its sixth consecutive NEC championship game. In the lowest scoring NEC Title game in NEC women's lacrosse history, second-seeded Wagner combined stingy defense with balanced scoring to claim the program's second straight title, as the Seahawks defeated top-seeded Mount St. Mary's 7-6 in a tightly-contested battle. Redshirt senior goalie
Kelsey Fee, who was named Tournament MVP, recorded 11 saves, with the final one coming on a free position shot with less than one second to play, which set off a raucous Seahawk celebration.
Fairfield's MAAC Tournament Road to the NCAA
Fairfield, winners of 11 straight games entering the NCAA's, were fueled by its highest-scoring offensive effort of the season in the MAAC semifinal matchup vs. Marist, outscoring the Red Foxes 18-4 on May 2. The Stags' 18-goal output was led by Brooke Gallagher, who rattled the cage a career-high seven times. Kelly Horning's goal with 33 seconds remaining in overtime sent Fairfield to the MAAC title with a 10-9 victory over Siena. The Stags are the back-to-back MAAC Champions for the first time in program history after claiming their fifth tournament crown overall (2001, 2009, 2015, 2018, 2019).
Something in Common:
Former Fairfield Star Now Seahawk Assistant
Wagners second-year assistant coach
Alex Fehmel is a 2017 Fairfield graduate and former four-year All-MAAC performer for the Stags. A two-time MAAC All-Academic Team honoree as well, Fehmel finished her career ranked eighth all-time in Fairfield history in points (167) and goals (125), first in game-winning goals (11), eighth in free-position goals (35), 10
th in assists (42), and ninth in games started (64).
Six Seahawks Earn All-NEC Women's Lacrosse Honors,
Highlighted By Erin Kerstetter Named Midfielder Of The Year
NEC Midfielder of the Year
So.
Erin Kerstetter
First-Team All-NEC
So.
Erin Kerstetter, MF
Sr.
Maddie Courtney, D
Sr.
Maggie Jent, D
So.
Madeline Seims, A/M
Second-Team All-NEC
So.
Stephanie Falcone, A
R-Sr.
Kelsey Fee, G
