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Fairfield University fans have the opportunity to purchase a 2013 Basketball Hall of Fame Tipoff Tournament ticket package, starting today.

The Stags will play four games in the tournament, starting with home games against Holy Cross and the University of Hartford earlier in November. Fairfield also will play national champion Lousiville on Nov. 23 and either North Carolina or Richmond on Nov. 24, with both games being played at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville.

Ticket packages, which will be available until Aug. 26, during this presale can only be made through the Fairfield University ticket office. For more information, contact Helen Smaldone at (203) 254-4136 or at email hsmaldone@fairfield.edu

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By William S. Paxton

When it came to finding sound advice about making a major change in his coaching career, Ed Swanson only needed to look inside his own house for help.
The Sacred Heart women’s basketball coach’s wife not only happens to be mother of their two children, but also known as Dr. Marion Swanson, PsyD.
So before the Swansons turned in for the night last Thursday they discussed the job offer on the table from William & Mary to run its women’s basketball program and Marion suggested they sleep on a decision.
When they awoke Friday morning, Dr. Swanson had one simple question for her patient.
“Are you going to regret (not taking) this in two or three years,” she asked.
“I think so,” Swanson replied.
Without hesitation, Marion Swanson responded “lets go!”
After 23 years leading the Pioneers to the top of the Northeast Conference – including three conference championship and three NCAA Tournament trips – Swanson was named the head coach of the Tribe during a press conference Tuesday morning in Williamsburg, Va.
“It’s the right situation at the right time in my life,” Swanson said by phone. “The players remind me of the players at Sacred Heart University and athletics director Terry Driscoll is similar to (SHU AD) Don Cook.”
During his two-decade-plus tenure at SHU, Swanson took a cellar-dwelling Division II program that didn’t even have a full-time coaching staff and made it a perennial mid-major power at the Division I level in the NEC. The Pioneers never finished lower than third since joining the NEC in 1999 and never missed the postseason once it became eligible.
The Tribe are already an established D-I program in the Colonial Athletic Association, but come off an 8-22 campaign and were in need of a program revival.
Swanson is the man they are banking on to lead it.
“I hope to do what I have done at Sacred Heart,” said Swanson, who reportedly receive a five-year deal for an undisclosed sum. “I don’t have to change my style of play or my philosophy on coaching. It’s just the right fit.”

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(Per Fairfield press release)

Maddy Sposito (Ridgefield) has earned a spot on the U.S. National Indoor Team. The goalkeeper will play her second consecutive season for the national team which will represent the United States in the 2014 Pan American Indoor Cup.

“I have always wanted to play for the United States Field Hockey team,” Sposito said. “I am very excited to return for another year with the indoor team. With a year of experience under my belt, I know the system, the coaches, and the players so that will hopefully help me make a travel squad and earn a cap.”

The senior squad consists of 25 players including twelve returning athletes. The newly selected team will begin an extensive training schedule in preparation for the 2014 Pan American Cup. The Pan American Cup is a qualifier for the FIH Indoor World Cup which will be held in Germany in 2015.

“Maddy’s hard work and determination has earned her a spot on the US team,” Fairfield Head Field Hockey Coach Jackie Kane said. “I am very proud of her as this was a dream of hers for a long time.”

Sposito started all 18 games as a senior in 2012, making 95 saves and posting a 2.94 goals against average. For her career, she made 271 saves and posted five shutouts which includes a personal-best three shutouts in 2012. She collected 3,300 minutes in the Fairfield net during her four-year career, registering a career-best 1,200 minutes during the 2012 campaign.

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Per Fairfield press release this morning:

Forward Amadou Sidibe (Bronx, N.Y.) was named team captain for the 2013-14 Fairfield University men’s basketball season. The announcement was made by coach Sydney Johnson on Friday afternoon. Sidibe, who attended Cardinal Hayes High School before enrolling at Fairfield, will enter his sophomore season in 2013-14.

“Amadou exemplifies everything that we want our student-athletes to stand for at Fairfield University,” Johnson said. “I expected a lot from Amadou as a freshman, and he exceeded our expectations.”

Sidibe capped his inaugural season with the Stags by earning the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Co-Rookie of the Year as well as a spot on the conference’s All-Rookie team. He finished his freshman campaign by averaging 5.7 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. He played in all but one regular-season game in 2012-13, starting 28 of his 34 appearances in his rookie season.

The forward posted two double-doubles during the season – 11 points and 11 rebounds against DePaul and 12 points and 11 rebounds versus Loyola. He secured a career-high 13 rebounds against Manhattan on February 12, a mark which he tied against Saint Peter’s in the MAAC tournament quarterfinals. He earned the MAAC Rookie of the Week on January 25 after he averaged 9.3 points and nine rebounds in a 2-1 week for the Stags.

“He is an extremely tough and a competitive player on the court,” Johnson said. “He is always working to become a better player. After inserting Amadou in the starting line-up in our fifth game of the season, he went on to lead our team in rebounding.”

Sidibe also excelled in the classroom this year, earning a spot on the University’s honor roll in the fall and is on course to receive the same recognition in the spring.

“With all of Amadou’s promise and accomplishments, he remains a humble young man and is well respected by his fellow teammates and coaching staff,” Johnson said. “Amadou has a bright future ahead of him at Fairfield University and I am pleased that he will represent our team as a captain.”