POUGHKEEPSIE, New York - The Marist volleyball team showed grit in the final set, but fell to Fairfield 3-0 (25-12, 25-12, 28-26) in a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference match Oct. 14 in McCann Arena.
 
Marist dropped to 9-11 overall and 6-3 in conference play while the top seeded Stags bumped up their MAAC mark to 8-0 and their overall record to 13-6.  
 
Turning Points:
Three of the match's first five points went Marist's way as sophomore Nikki DeSerpa slammed a pair of kills. The Stags then burst out on a 12-4 run to force a Red Foxes' timeout. Fairfield's solid attack gave them the early edge and momentum also stayed with the Stags in the second set, as they eventually had an eight-point cushion and went ahead 2-0.
 
The final frame was the most competitive of the afternoon, featuring seven ties and four lead changes. Down 13-6, the Red Foxes eventually clawed back with four straight points to cut the deficit to three and forced Fairfield to talk it over. Marist took its first lead of the stanza on a kill by sophomore Megan Fergus that made it 19-18. With match point on the line a Fairfield attack error that just went out of bounds knotted the score at 24. Kills off the hands of junior Mackenzie O'Brien and senior Ashton Korona made it 26-25 in favor of Marist. It was the Stags who got the final three points of the day however.
 
Inside the Numbers:
- Fergus led all Red Foxes with eight kills and three total blocks.
- Senior Kelsey Ediger dove for a team-high 13 digs alongside seven kills.
- Stags' sophomore Manuela Nicolini led her team in assists (26), total blocks (4) and aces (2).
- Fairfield hit .220 and slammed 37 kills for the match.
 
Up Next:
Marist will have its Study Break match at 1 p.m. Oct. 15 when it battles Quinnipiac. The promotion will be co-sponsored by Marist College Student Activities, Student Government Association, First Year Programs and the Health & Wellness Center.
 
The first 100 students in attendance will receive foam fox claws and there will be other raffles, contests and giveaways.