Why Fairfield’s L’Amoreaux is ‘never afraid of the big moment’
FAIRFIELD — In an era of specialization in high school sports, Kaety L’Amoreaux is a role model for anti-specialization.
Her experience playing different sports at the high school level has made the Fairfield University women’s basketball freshman guard’s adjustment to college easier and allowed her to play a big role in what’s been a special season for the No. 25 Stags, who will take on No. 5 Canisius, 58-55 winners over fourth-seeded Manhattan, in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament semifinals Friday at 11 a.m. in Atlantic City.
L’Amoreaux had 19 points — including her team’s final seven in the last 43 seconds — as topseeded Fairfield (29-1 and winner of 27 straight) held off No. 8 Rider 57-51 in a quarterfinal game Wednesday.
“It’s definitely helped me,” L’Amoreaux said. “My parents were huge on that. They’d always say that they wanted us involved in some sport, any sport. They wouldn’t care if I switched and played tennis or did something different, but they wanted me involved in something.
“It was easy for me because I loved playing sports. It didn’t matter if it was soccer, or kickball with my friends, basketball, anything. It was something I enjoyed. In high school sports you build so many bonds and meet so many great people and there are so many great experiences to have. I loved it and my parents encouraged it.”
In 29 games with 22 starts for Fairfield, L’Amoreaux is averaging 10.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.6 steals in 26.7 minutes per game. On Monday, she was a unanimous selection to the MAAC all-rookie team.
She’s hit double figures 14 times, scoring 20 points in wins at Mount St. Mary’s on Feb. 17 and at Manhattan March 2. Against Mount St. Mary’s, she connected on gametying and go-ahead 3pointers in the final 30 seconds in a contest won by the Stags on Emina Selimovic’s layup with 1.6 seconds to go.
“Kaety’s got that ‘It’ factor,” Fairfield coach Carly Thibault-DuDonis said. “It’s something you just can’t teach. One of the things my staff knows about me is that I love coaching kids who have that edge. She’s never afraid of the big moment. I think her first college 3pointer was from 30 feet.
“We joke some times that she’s a wild stallion and we’re shepherding her in different ways. But she’s super-coachable so there are ways she’s been more efficient and knows what’s a good shot and a great shot and lives to see another possession and get someone else a shot.”
L’Amoreaux, like her teammate and 2024 MAAC Rookie of the Year Meghan Andersen, originally committed to Fordham while attending Maine-Endwell High in New York. But when Fordham fired coach Stephanie Gaitley in June 2022, announcing the change in a terse threesentence statement, L’Amoreaux re-opened the recruiting process.
She also reached out to Gaitley, who recommended Fairfield and Monmouth to her. Gaitley had coached Thibault-DuDonis at Monmouth
“Meg’s and Kaety’s stories are different as far as our connections,” Thibault-DuDonis said. “I hadn’t seen her. When she opened up her recruitment, Coach Gaitley had called me and said, ‘Trust me, you’ll love this kid. She’s tough. She’s gritty. She can score. She plays defense.’ Knowing me and having coached me, she said, ‘She’s wired just like you.’ So we started recruiting her and it was a quick turnaround.
“I was supposed to see her at the end of July but her appendix ruptured so she was out. But one of our assistants had seen her and said she’s perfect in what we want to do. We got her on campus in early August and she committed on the visit.”