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Staten Island, NY -- After three decades at the helm, Jackie Kane may be bidding farewell to Fairfield field hockey, but will leave as a champion.

Kane, who is retiring at the end of the season after a storied career that includes over 250 wins, added a third NEC championship title to the trophy case after steering the third-seeded Stags to a 2-1 win over top-seeded Wagner in a nailbiting final in Staten Island. All three of Fairfield's titles have come in the last five years (2019, 2021).

But Kane and her team are not done yet, as they will be representing the NEC in the NCAA Field Hockey Tournament. The NCAA field will be revealed on Sunday, November 10 at 10:00 pm ET live on NCAA.com. The tournament begins on Wednesday, November 13 with opening round action.

Fairfield (12-8) and Wagner (12-7) are no strangers to postseason duals.

The two teams have met in the NEC Tournament in each of the last three years, but today marked the first time the Seahawks and Stags clashed in the title game.

It did not disappoint.

After a scoreless first quarter, Fairfield struck first in the second after drawing a penalty stroke. Junior Alice Pifferi (Newark, DE/Caravel Academy) rifled the ball into the back of the cage to give Fairfield the 1-0 lead over the regular season champions.

Fairfield was able to hold onto the one goal advantage heading into the half despite a flurry of opportunities from Wagner, which had three penalty corner chances in the second quarter.

The Seahawks would draw a penalty stroke of their own just 3:54 into the second half. Sophomore and All-Tournament Team member Pilar Lorenzini (Mendoza, Argentina/Instituto Nuestra Señora del Libano) slipped it past Fairfield goalie Payton Rahn (Orange, CT/Amity) to even the score.

Just three minutes later, sophomore Courtland Schumacher (Newtown Square, PA/Archbishop John Carroll) used some fancy stick work to slice through the Seahawk defense and find junior Rylee LaLoup (Pottstown, PA/Owen J. Roberts) in front of the cage to fire it in for the game-winning goal. LaLoup was also tabbed to the All-Tournament squad.

The Seahawks would come agonizingly close to scoring in the final quarter, racking up six of their 12 penalty corners during the final 15 minutes in an attempt to force overtime. Wagner pulled NEC Goalkeeper of the Year Saar van Dalen (Houten, Netherlands/Cals College Nieuwegein) midway through the fourth to maximize its offensive opportunities.

"This was a gritty win today," Kane said. "We took chances today when opportunities were presented and we finished those chances. Defensively, Payton (Rahn) came up with some big saves. There really wasn't one person to single out defensively because the back three were always composed and cleared the ball when we needed it. I'm really happy for this team because everyone single person contributed to this win."

Fairfiled sophomore forward Catalina Ness (Hamburg, Germany/Gymnasium Christianeum), who scored the game-winner in the Stags' 2-1 win over Rider in the semifinals, was named NEC Tournament MVP.

Rahn, the 2023 NEC Goalkeeper of the Year, came up clutch multiple times for the Stags, making seven saves with five coming in the second half. Van Dalen turned back three shots for the Green & White.

Wagner outshot Fairfield, 12-6, with the Seahawks firing eight on goal compared to five for the Stags.

The Stags earned their sixth NCAA Tournament berth and their third as a member of the NEC. Fairfield’s last NCAA appearance came in 2021.

2024 NEC All-Tournament Team (Graphic)
Catalina Ness, So., F/M, FAIR (MVP)
Konni Hofmann, Jr., F/M, FAIR
Rylee LaLoup, Jr., F/M, FAIR
Erin McGinley, Sr., F, FAIR
Pilar Lorenzini, So., M/F, WC
Romy Matthies, So., M/F, WC
Saar van Dalen, Fr., GK, WC
Lotte Haagmans, Fr., F, LIU
Eva Valentini, Sr., D/F, LIU
Angela Borisow, So., M, RID
Lyric Scott, Sr., F, RID