NEW ROCHELLE, NY - The Iona College volleyball team won its third straight match, defeating previously MAAC unbeaten Fairfield in four sets at the Hynes Center. The Gaels moved into a four-way tie for first place with the Stags, Niagara and Canisius with the win. Outside hitters Theresa Harvey and Alicja Pawelec combined for 25 kills in the victory.

The Gaels won the first two sets 25-22 and 25-15 before dropping the third 25-18. Iona came back to win the fourth set 25-16.

Harvey posted a match best 13 kills and hit .297. She added eight digs and four blocks defensively. Pawelec had 12 kills and four digs. In the middle seniors Rachel Whitten and Colleen Genett combined for 16 kills with eight a piece. Whitten posted a .278 hitting percentage with a team best eight blocks. Genett hit .350 with three blocks of her own. Senior S Alyssa Erickson had 34 assists while adding six digs and six blocks. In the back row, senior DS Laura Fojanesi had 12 digs while senior libero Allison Nieters added 11.

The Gaels hit .221 for the match posting .290 and .400 in the first two set wins. Iona also converted 67.9% of its side outs including an incredible 82.4% in the second set.

Faifield was led by Lauren Hughes' 12 kills and 19 digs from libero Kara Reis.

The Gaels snapped the Stags 10-game conference winning streak dated back to last season. They also snapped a three-match slide against Fairfield.

Iona returns to MAAC play next weekend in its annual Western NY trip. The Gaels take on two squads they share first place with in Niagara and Canisius.