EDISON, N.J. - The Fairfield University volleyball team was predicted as the team to beat in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC), according to the league's Preseason Coaches Poll released this afternoon. Senior Lindsey Lee (Hilo, Hawaii/St. Joseph) was picked as the Preseason Player of the Year while two other Stags earned Preseason All-MAAC nods.

Fairfield went 24-8 overall last season and notched an impressive 18-0 mark in MAAC play en route to its third-straight MAAC Regular Season Championship. The Stags closed out the season by winning 20 consecutive matches, all against conference opponents, before falling to Siena in the MAAC Championship Finals.

Lee, the 2006 MAAC Offensive Player of the Year, appeared in all 104 games, finishing the season with an average of 4.09 kills per game, good for second in the conference and tops on the team. She also was in the top-ten in the league in hitting percentage (.268) and digs per game (4.06). Lee recorded 21 kill-dig double-doubles on the year and picked up her 1,000th career kill and 1,000th career dig. In addition to earning MAAC Offensive Player of the Year honors in 2006, Lee was named to the All-MAAC First Team, the MAAC All-Tournament Team and the All-MAAC Preseason Team, and earned three MAAC Player of the Week nods. Currently, she has 1,197 kills and 1,280 digs to her credit, good for fourth all-time in both categories on the Fairfield charts.

Joining Lee on the Preseason All-MAAC Team are sophomores Barbie Thistle (Bakersfield, Calif./Bakersfield) and Katie Mann (Del Mar, Calif./Torrey Pines).

In just her first season with the Stags, Thistle was named the MAAC Setter of the Year along with All-MAAC Second Team and MAAC All-Tournament Team accolades. She dished out 1,279 assists for the program's fourth-highest single season total, while leading the MAAC in assists per game (12.30). She was third in the league in aces per game (.50) and had 68 total blocks, 236 digs, and 131 kills en route to five MAAC Rookie of the Week selections.

Mann was also outstanding in her first year with the Stags, earning All-MAAC Second Team honors. The middle hitter appeared in all 104 games and led the team in hitting percentage (.377), which also ranked her 24th in the nation. She also led the team in block solos (13), block assists (85) and total blocks (98). The four-time MAAC Rookie of the Week finished second on the team in aces per game (0.34) and third on the team in kills per game (2.69)

The Stags, who lost just two players from last year's squad, earned nine first place votes, finishing with a total of 99 points. Siena was close behind with 91 points. Manhattan was selected third with 71 points while Canisius rounded out the top four with 61 points in the poll.

Fairfield, whose 2007 schedule features seven NCAA Tournament participants, opens the season at the San Diego State Tournament, August 24-25. The 2007 MAAC Volleyball Championships come to Fairfield, November 18-19, with the final being broadcast live on ESPNU.

MAAC Preseason Coaches Poll
(First place votes in parenthesis)

Preseason All-MAAC Team
Jessica Stackhouse, Canisius
Lindsey Lee, Fairfield
Katie Mann, Fairfield
Barbie Thistle, Fairfield
Sherrytta Stokes, Manhattan
Nadiege Honore, Siena
Burgandy McCurty, Siena

Preseason Player of the Year
Lindsey Lee, Fairfield