stag loyalists in red, punching air horns and ringing cowbells — it was the way a title game at Fairfield’s Alumni Hall should be. That November day, Stags volleyball defeated Quinnipiac 3 to 1 to win the 2019 MAAC Championship. It was Coach Todd Kress’s sixth championship ring. Fairfield went on to play in the NCAAs, where they faced the nation’s seventh-ranked team, the University of Minnesota.

There, the Stags fell in three contested sets, but it was clear that playing among the top in the nation is where they now belong. Ever since coming to Fairfield in 1995, Kress has met with success. He’s the all-time school leader in wins (225), and he holds a 58-game winning streak versus conference foes. At present, he owns more MAAC championships than any other Stags coach.

“Todd has developed a great team chemistry and a dynamic selflessness,” said Paul Schlickmann, Fairfield’s athletics director. “He has a knack for finding high-level talent that other programs overlook. In their classroom performance, community service, and common purpose, volleyball embodies what we are all about here.”

In his first stint as Fairfield’s head coach (he left for Northern Illinois after the 1998 season) Kress won two conference championships and produced the school’s single best season, 35-2. Since returning to campus in 2014, he has produced four more conference Championships. 

But in 2019, the glory was almost not to be. Fairfield faced Marist in the MAAC championship semifinals. Down two games in the match, the Stags faced the real possibility of being upset on their home court. “I really didn’t realize we were down until the later stages of the third set,” said Fairfield’s

returning senior captain Manuela Nicolini ’20 of Castelnuovo Rangone, Italy (Volleyball matches are played to the best of five sets, and each set needs to be won by 2 points). “At one point I remember thinking, ‘Oh my God, we have to get this point.’ But the team somehow knew we weren’t going to lose.”

And they didn’t, taking the third set 25-22 and the fifth 15-11. Said Kress: “You only get a few of these matches in your career, either playing or coaching.”

Nicolini has been a critical part of the team’s success. The 2019 MAAC Player and Setter of the Year has garnered numerous star accolades and statistics as a Stag. She has won the Best Setter award twice and is the first-ever conference player to be named best in two categories for one year. 

Nicolini also sits fourth on Fairfield’s all-time assist list. And since she red-shirted a year, the senior will return to Fairfield next year, looking to become the Stags’ third player to have three 1,000-assist seasons.

“I didn’t really know anything about U.S. volleyball when I was growing up in Italy,” said Nicolini. “I just liked Fairfield’s location close to New York City and the school’s academic reputation. I feel so lucky to be here. It’s a great community, a great environment. When we travel and I see the other schools I realize how great Fairfield is.”

For all the conference championships, the question remains: when will Stags volleyball advance in the NCAA tournament? Kress said simply, “It bugs me. Taking the next step is what gets me up each morning. [Winning a tournament game] is definitely one of my goals and the team’s.”

In order to avoid a top seeded team like Minnesota in the first round of the NCAA’s, Fairfield’s ratings have to change. Kress explained, “Our RPI [Rating Percentage Index] was around one hundred this year. It’s probably one of the highest a MAAC team has ever had. But for us to avoid a top-16 seed we have to get in the forties or fifties.”

The problem is, generally, other MAAC teams do not have high RPIs, so despite winning so often within the MAAC, those wins don’t help move Fairfield up in the rankings. And the Stags desperately need to win some early season tournament games against higher-ranked competition. 

Sticking to core principles has worked so far, and that will continue to be the way forward. “We want to create a student-athlete model and experience that is second to none,” said Schlickmann. “Fairfield should be a place to go where men and women can compete at the highest level. Competitive success will be a by-product of that.”

The school’s striking athletics facilities, fresh uniforms, and gleaming gear, as well as its expanding social media and streaming coverage won’t hurt as volleyball takes the step up to a higher level. Then there’s the new Arena and  Convocation Center, expected to be completed in 2021 — build it and they will prevail. Volleyball will play there, too