The Fairfield University softball team will begin its run in the 2026 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championship on Thursday, May 7. The Stags, seeded second, are set to face the winner of a matchup between third-seeded Iona University and sixth-seeded Siena University at 3 p.m. The tournament is hosted by top-seeded Marist University and continues through Saturday, May 9.
The Stags secured their spot as the number two seed after finishing the regular season with a three-game sweep over Saint Peter’s University. Since April 1, Fairfield has won 16 of its last 21 games overall and posted a strong conference record by winning 13 out of their final 16 MAAC games. Their performance resulted in a conference record of 19-7 and an overall mark of 27-22.
Head Coach Julie Brzezinski’s team enters the championship with a notable record against this year’s tournament field, having gone seven wins and three losses against other qualifying teams. While Fairfield lost two early games to Marist University during opening weekend, they rebounded with victories including sweeps over Sacred Heart and Quinnipiac. Against Siena, Fairfield dropped one game but won the next two; they did not play Iona during the regular season.
Three student-athletes received All-MAAC honors for their contributions this year: Sarah Bielski led in batting average (.345) and on-base percentage (.477), while Anna Paravati joined Ava Armuth among players reaching at least forty hits for the season. Paravati also tied freshman Sammie Doughtery for most runs batted in at twenty-eight.
Pitcher Alyssa Weinberg stands out with her career statistics—currently fourth all-time in wins (43), third in appearances (120), third in strikeouts (503), and second for strikeouts per seven innings pitched (6.93). This season she leads all pitchers in the MAAC with one hundred eighty-five strikeouts after topping that category last year as well.
Fairfield is aiming for its fourth MAAC championship title; previous wins came in years including their first victory in nineteen ninety-one followed by titles—and NCAA automatic bids—in two thousand fifteen and two thousand seventeen.
