Box Score

SAN DIEGO, Calif. - The Fairfield University volleyball team dropped its 2007 season opener to three-time defending NEC Champion Long Island University, 3-0 (28-30, 19-30, 27-30), in the opening game of the Aztec Invitational this evening.

Sophomores Katie Mann (Del Mar, Calif./Torrey Pines) and Barbie Thistle (Bakersfield, Calif./Bakersfield) paced the Stags. Mann had a team-high 12 kills and .458 hitting percentage while Thistle posted a double-double with 28 assists and 11 digs. Thistle also contributed three kills.

Playing in front of a hometown crowd, seniors Kelly Oliver (San Diego, Calif./La Jolla) and Lauren Campbell (San Diego, Calif./Mount Carmel) had solid efforts. Oliver posted nine digs and three kills while Campbell had four total blocks and three kills.

As a team, Fairfield had a tough night hitting, recording a .087 attack percentage while LIU hit .230. The Blackbirds also out-blocked the Stags, 9-6, and held a 47-35 advantage in kills.

The Stags got off to a slow start in the opening frame, trailing by as much as three points before Oliver tied the match, 11-11, with a kill. With the score knotted at 16-16, the Blackbirds went on a 6-1 run to go on top, 22-17. Fairfield chipped away at the lead, using a 10-4 run, capped off by a Mann service ace, to pull ahead, 27-26. The lead was short-lived, however, as LIU picked up four points in its next five chances to take the first game, 30-28.

The Blackbirds continued their push in game two, coming from behind to take a 15-8 lead on a kill by Shelby Heggie. The Stags would pull within four points in the second half of the game, but LIU closed out the stanza on a 7-1 run for a 30-19 victory.

The third frame was close at the start but with the score set at 11-11, the Blackbirds went on a 6-1 run to gain some breathing room. The Stags continued to fight even though they trailed throughout most of the game. Down 28-21, Fairfield used a 6-1 spurt to pull within 29-27 on a kill by Lopez. The rally fell short as LIU's Trevon Dyson sealed the match with a kill on the ensuing point. The Blackbirds defense was tough, holding Fairfield to a negative-.059 attack percentage in game three.

Senior Lindsey Lee (Hilo, Hawaii/St. Joseph) notched 10 digs and six kills while junior Karlie Urbaniak (Canton, Minn./Mabel-Canton) added six digs and five kills. Defensively, Brandi Higa (Honolulu, Hawaii/Hawaii Baptist Academy) tallied 13 digs while senior Jazmin Pa'akaula (Hilo, Hawaii/St. Joseph) chipped in with six digs and a block assist.

In their collegiate debuts, rookies Alex Lopez (Fort Collins, Colo./Rocky Mountain) and Lauren Wagner (Eagan, Minn./Cretin-Derham Hall) played well. Lopez recorded three digs and a kill while Wagner has two digs and a kill.

Tonight's loss was the first season-opening defeat for the Stags in three seasons.

Fairfield (0-1) continues action at the Aztec Invitational tomorrow, August 25, against host San Diego State at 1 p.m. (EST) and UC Santa Barbara at 7 p.m. (EST).