Fairfield University senior women's lacrosse player Mary Vallely (Ayer, Mass.) was named the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Lacrosse League Defensive Player of the Year for the second consecutive season.  Freshman Kristen Coleman (Potomac, Md.) was named the league's Co-Offensive Player of the Year and the Rookie of the Year. 

Vallely and Coleman were also named first team All-MAAC, and were joined on that team by sophomore Erin Rigby (Fair Haven, N.J.).  Junior Lauren Chatnik (Schenectady, N.Y.), junior Abbey Goodwin (Columbus, Ohio), senior Katie von Hoffmann (Montclair, N.J.), and junior Rebecca White (Spring Lake, N.J.) were all voted to the All-MAAC second team, as selected by the league's head coaches.

The Stags also had six players named to the MAAC All-Academic Team, which was also announced at the annual tournament banquet, held Thursday at Iona College.  The Stags all-academic selections are: Kelly Barnes (Jenkintown, Pa.), Renee L'Heureux (Glastonbury, Conn.), Cristin Lucena (Orangeburg, N.Y.), Caroline Madrak (Berwyn, Pa.), Alyssa Vecchione (Sudbury, Mass.), and White.

Vallely earns the top defensive honors for the second time, after helping the Stags lead the league in both caused turnovers and goals-against.  She was finished the regular season with a team and league-best 28 caused turnovers, as well as picking up a team-high 41 ground balls.  The defender was an asset on the offensive end as well, netting three goals and dishing out four assists, while winning 16 draw controls.

Coleman set single-season school records in points, 81, and goals, 61, during her freshman season.  Through games of April 20 she is ranked third in the nation in total points, helping the Stags to a single-season team record of 275 points, good for second nationally.  Coleman leads the team in all three offensive categories, including a freshman record 20 assists.  She has 25 caused turnovers, third on the team, as well as 22 draw controls and 19 ground balls.  Coleman is the third Stag to earn offensive honors since 2002, and the first since current head coach Beth Loffredo captured the award in 2004.  She joins both Loffredo and Goodwin as rookie of the year honorees for the program since 2003.

Rigby is the Stags second leading scorer, totaling 58 points during the regular season, and the third best effort in a single-season.  She has touched net 42 times on the year, sixth in a single-season, while dishing out 16 assists.  Rigby has a team-best 51 draw controls on the season, while picking up 17 ground balls and causing eight turnovers.

Von Hoffmann earns her third consecutive second team selection with the Stags.  She started all 17 games this season, and enters the tournament with 15 draw controls, 11 ground balls and nine caused turnovers.  She has added to the Stags offensive attack as well, with seven goals and five assists. Goodwin earns second team accolades for the second time in her career, after scoring 41 points in the regular season.  She has tallied 28 goals, fourth on the team, and dished out 13 assists. 

For White, it is her first postseason award of her Stags career.  She is third on the team with 43 points, including 29 goals and 14 assists.  She is third on the team with 33 ground balls and 33 draw controls, while also causing 26 turnovers.  Chatnik earns her accolades after winning16 games this season, bringing her career total to 28, a school record.  She has made 146 saves this season and leading the league with a 10.35 goals against average.

The Stags are the top-seed at the 2008 MAAC Tournament, which begins on Friday.  Fairfield enters the tournament with a 16-game win streak, posting a 16-1 overall mark, and an undefeated MAAC record, at 6-0.  The Stags will play number-four Iona College in the second semifinal. Game time is slated for 3 p.m. and will not start earlier than the scheduled time. The first game, which begins at noon, will feature second-seeded Marist College and the number three-seed Canisius College.  The winners will meet on Sunday at noon for the championship game.