The Fairfield University women’s basketball team will return to the practice floor on Wednesday in anticipation of an at-large bid to the Women’s National Invitation Tournament (WNIT), which begins Wednesday March 19.

The WNIT is a 48-team, single-elimination tournament.  There are 17 at-large bids available, after 31 teams earn automatic bids, one in each conference.

The Stags have posted a 22-9 record under first-year head coach Joe Frager.  The Stags, who advanced to the semifinals of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championships, finished in a tie for second place in the regular season, with WNIT bound Iona College.

“We feel that we have had a season that is deserving of an opportunity to play for a post-season championship,” said Frager.  “Toward that end we are back in the gym practicing to ensure that we are ready for our next opponent.”

Fairfield boasts an impressive resume to be considered by the WNIT selection committee.  The Stags went 10-1 in non-conference play this season, the best non-conference winning percentage in the program’s history.  Among those 10 victories, is a home win over Boston College of the ACC, and a road win over the Atlantic-10’s Richmond.

The Stags have been hot down the stretch as well, posting a 12-4 mark over the last 16 games, including eight of its last 11 counting MAAC Tournament play.  Of the team’s nine losses this year, five are at the hands of teams that have already qualified for postseason play, and a sixth was at Big East member Villanova by just six points.

The Stag are led by two-time first team All-MAAC performer Sabra Wrice, who currently is seventh all-time in the school’s history with 1,577 career points.  She pairs with two-time second team All-MAAC selection Baendu Lowenthal, who this year became the 22nd player in Stags history to eclipse the 1,000 point mark for a career, with 1,033.

The pair are the first teammates to play together with over 1,000 career points in five seasons at Fairfield.  This comes on the heels of finishing their high school careers first and second in scoring at Riverside High School.

Junior point guard Megan Caskin more than doubled her career assist total in one season, becoming the first Stag since 2005 to dish out over 100 in a single-season, with 156.  Also on the roster, and healthy, is Stephanie Geehan.  After missing nine games, the sophomore returned at the end of the regular season, with the team going 3-1 in those games.  Before missing the games, she ranked among the nation’s elite in rebounding and had five double-doubles to her credit.