Women’s Hockey falls 6-1 to Brown

Women’s Hockey falls 6-1 to Brown
by Justin Cohen
January 11, 2008

HAMDEN – The Quinnipiac Bobcats came into Friday’s game versus the Brown Bears riding a two game winning streak and hungry for a conference victory. But the Bears had something else to say, putting up 4 unanswered goals in the second period and eventually winning 6-1. Brown improves to 2-11-3, 2-7-2 ECAC while Quinnipiac falls to 3-13-4, 0-9-3 ECAC. Brown’s Hayley Moore had 4 points, including 2 goals, and Nicole Stock made 22 saves in the winning effort.

“Brown flat out took it to us,” Bobcats coach Michael Barrett said following the loss. “Today was a must win and we didn’t play it like it was.”

The Bobcats and Bears played evenly in the first, but Brown would set the tempo early in the second. Heather Lane scored just 42 seconds into the period and at the 2 minute mark, Savannah Smith scored. For both players it was their first of the season.

Later in the period, Jenny Cedorchuk scored her 2nd of the year just 2 minutes and 54 seconds later, and Moore scored later in the period.

The Bobcats did get a chance in the 3rd. Just under 9 minutes in, Trudy Reyns ripped a shot top shelf from the point to put the Bobcats on the board 4-1, but it was too little too late.

Hayley Moore scored again at 10:30 to put the icing on the cake at 5-1, and Erin Connors tapped one in 2 minutes and 1 second later to make the score 6-1.

More impressive than the outcome was the score. This was the first time the Bears had scored more than 3 goals in a game this season, and the first time since February 9, 2007 vs. Union.

One bright spot for the Bobcats was Brandice Moniz. Her play has continued to improve this season, and while she did not score a goal, her defensive presence was felt. She recorded a penalty in the second for checking.

“[Moniz is] maturing well as a freshman,” Barrett said.

Jamie Miller was also a bright spot. Although she allowed 6 goals, she saved the game from getting more out of control on multiple occasions and made 24 saves, before being replaced in net by Tia Wishart.

Brown travels to Princeton to take on the Tigers at 4:00 Saturday while the Bobcats will battle cross-town rival Yale at 4:00 at the TD Banknorth Sports Center.

Three Stars:
1. BRO Hayley Moore
2. BRO Andrea Hunter
3. QU Trudy Rynes
Time: 2:05 Att: 113

Women’s Hockey faces off against Brown tonight

Women’s Hockey faces off against Brown tonight
by Justin Cohen
December 11, 2007

TONIGHT: FRIDAY 1/11/08. Brown @ Quinnipiac - 7pm
TV: None
RADIO: www.quinnipiacbobcats.com. Eli Olken-Dann and Chris Lopresti have the call.

HAMDEN — Tonight might be the most pivotal night this season for the Bobcats. Coming in 11th in the ECAC and without a conference win (0-8-3), the Bobcats are still within striking distance of the coveted 8th seed (top 8 advance to the playoffs) in a wide open conference. In fact, a sweep this weekend could bring the team within 1 point of the 8th seed.

Add to that, the Bobcats are riding a 2 game winning streak, something they have not done all season, and a 3 game unbeaten streak. Quinnipiac has 3 home wins already, which ties them with last years team for home wins The Bobcats are led by freshman Brandice Moniz, who has shown great talent on the ice, leading the team with 11 points; Elyse Cole, who along with Moniz had 2 points last weekend and 11 points on the season; and Erica Bolognino who scored a goal and added an assist over the weekend.

Brown, on the other hand, is only 1 point better than the Bobcats. With a 1-7-2 conference record, the Bears are stuck in 10th place with 4 points. Brown’s only win this season was versus Union. Quinnipiac tied Union earlier on in the season.

Outside of their win versus Union, Brown has not won another game, but has played quality opponents including #8 Connecticut, #8/9 Dartmouth, #6/#7 Harvard, #5 St. Lawrence, and most recently #1 New Hampshire. They are coming off a 3-3 tie against Northeastern.

Brown’s player to watch for is starting goaltender Nicole Stock. Stock, a junior, can be credited with keeping her team in the game on multiple occasions, making at least 30 saves in 10 of her 15 starts, and at least 43 saves 3 times this season.

Bobcats get their hustle on, hold off Mount Saint Mary’s

Bobcats get their hustle on, hold off Mount Saint Mary’s

By: Michael T. Lyle, Jr.
WQAQ.com Sports

HAMDEN - For the Bobcats against Mount Saint Mary’s, the name of the game was hustling. They dove for loose balls, played tough defense and got their offense going on a few fast-break attempts. Heck, even the majority of the TD Banknorth Sports Center fans nearly jumped out of their seats as Evann Baker missed a one-handed dunk over a defender.

It was one of those nights for Quinnipiac, and against a Mount St. Mary’s team that’s known mostly for their defense, the Bobcats mixed up theirs with some quality offensive output from the usual cast.

DeMario Anderson scored 11 of his 21 points in the second half to help Quinnipiac bounce back from Saturday’s loss to Robert Morris with a 70-59 Northeast Conference victory. The senior captain also made some key defensive plays to fend off a late Mountaineer rally and got support from Karl Anderson and James Feldeine, two of five Bobcats that score in double-figures. Karl had 12 and Feldeine added 11.

“We played weak in the first half because they worked hard on defense,” said Bobcats’ head coach Tom Moore. “We were stronger coming off the screens and off the ball in the second half. The neat thing is that we had enough in the tank to weather the storm down the stretch.”

After a first half that featured four lead changes and seven ties, Feldeine and DeMario got things going for the Bobcats (7-8, 3-1 NEC) to start the final period. Feldeine knocked down a three-pointer, followed by a block by DeMario and another three-pointer that fueled a 14-6 run and opened up a 40-32 lead with under 15 minutes left.

The Mount (7-9, 3-2) kept their defensive pressure going against the Bobcats, and fatigue started to settle in late for the hosts. It sure looked that way as bad passing, sloppy possessions and a few silly fouls left the door open for the Mountaineers as Jeremy Goode scored on an uncontested layup in the lane to cut the lead to 58-51 with 4:18 to go.

But Feldeine and Karl put an end to the Mountaineers comeback as they scored on consecutive buckets to push the lead back up to ten, 67-57, with 1:22 remaining.

Goode led Mount Saint Mary’s with 15 points and Will Holland added 10.

“The came out and were more aggressive in the second half,” said Mountaineers head coach Milan Brown. “We found ourselves having to play uphill for so long. They simply beat us at our own game tonight.”

Mountaineer forward Sam Atupem got the visitors off to a 19-18 lead with a pair of buckets late in the opening half. A three-point play by Karl, then a jumper by Brian Geffen briefly gave Quinnipiac a 26-25 lead before a free-throw by Atupem drew Mount Saint Mary’s even at intermission.

NOTES: The game also marked the return of Casey Cosgrove, who missed Saturday’s game due to a back injury caused by hip-alignment. He went scoreless in 14 minutes of action. Moore said that he’s still fighting the issue, but its nothing serious.

Anderson Shines As Bobcats Score Pivotal Victory

Anderson Shines As Bobcats Score Pivotal Victory
By Zach Smart

HAMDEN — Prior to the 2007-2008 campaign, then newly-appointed head coach Tom Moore spoke privately with then-incoming senior DeMario Anderson. The mentor-and-pupil session covered everything from Anderson’s new leadership role to team aspirations.

Even before the meeting took place, however, Anderson saw the writing on the wall.

The onus is on him to lead this year. The Bobcats will only go as far as Anderson—an ultra-athletic 6-foot-4 swingman—takes them.

Since that meeting, “DA” hasn’t been the same player that emerged as one of the league’s top scorers last season.

By leaps and bounds, he’s better.

Playing a more of an all-around and tougher brand of basketball, Anderson has led by example and surfaced as a serious candidate for Northeast Conference Player of the Year in the young season.

These aspects were on display Thursday night, as the Bobcats fended off a defensive-minded Mount St. Mary’s team en route to a 70-59 victory before 968 at the TD Banknorth Sports Center. The Bobcats improve to 3-1 in the NEC with the victory.

With a steady mix of mid-range jumpers, outside shots, and strong takes to the cup, the Oxon Hill, MD product gave his workaday offensive performance. Anderson would finish with 21 points, a thread over his season scoring average, on 9-for-17 shooting.

But it was his defensive energy and creativity with the ball that helped propel the Bobcats to a much-needed conference win.

“He’s a special player,” said Moore. “I know I take him for granted. He’s a superstar. For a superstar, he’s a very unselfish player.”

Anderson inhaled seven rebounds, handed out three assists, and recorded four steals to go with two eye-popping blocks in 35 minutes.

Mount St. Mary’s employed a tight man-to-man defense that threw the Bobcats out of their groove early in a sloppy, turnover-plagued first half. But the Bobcats (7-8 overall) snapped out of the funk, clawing back from a seven-point deficit as the game hit a 26-26 logjam at the break.

In a game that featured nine ties and four lead changes, the Mount never quit but were outplayed in the second half. Chris Vann who came into the conference averaging 16 points and dropped 28 on the Bobcats last year, was

Mount coach Milan Brown said that in practice, his troops focused on clamping down on Anderson and sealing off the perimeter, where the Bobcats can get El Azizia-hot.

“I was more disappointed in how many layups they made,” said Brown, who admits that his team bears more of a defensive identity than they showed tonight. Them beating us off the dribble hurt us tonight. That’s not what we teach, that’s not how we play.”

Anderson scored 10 points in the first ten minutes, as the Bobcats shot an efficient 12-for-24 from the floor in the first half. As play progressed, however, D.A. began to operate offense—knifing through a pair of defenders and finding Louis Brookins (10 points, nine boards) for an open lay-in as the momentum-pendulum swung in the Bobcats’ direction for much of the second half.

During one crucial juncture, Anderson dove for a loose ball and tried to rip it away from 7-foot, 245-pound center Jason Loughry. The Bobcats won the jump ball, and on the ensuing possession Anderson swatted Markus Mitchell, sprinted to the left side and canned a pull-up three-pointer that bumped Quinnipiac ahead, 40-32—causing an irate Brown to call a 30-second timeout.

After hitting his second trey of the game, Anderson swatted Will Holland’s shot attempt in a wild sequence that led to a Bryan Geffen layup that jacked the lead up to 11.

As impressive as Anderson was, he clearly wasn’t alone.

Fifth-year senior Karl Anderson scored 12 points off the bench and James Feldeine added 11. Evann Baker chipped in with 10. Geffen finished with a game-high seven dimes.

Smurf-size point guard Jeremy Goode led Mount St. Mary’s, whose losing streak extends to three games with the loss, with 15 points and six assists.

A few notes heading into tonight’s meeting against Mount St. Mary’s

A few notes heading into tonight’s meeting against Mount St. Mary’s:

Injury Riddled: The Bobcats suffered a sharp blow when blink-quick point guard Casey Cosgrove (8.2 PPG, 3.5 APG) fell out with a nagging back injury before the Robert Morris game. It was a game-time decision, and it appears Cosgrove will have to wait a while before jumping back into the fold.

Freshman forward/center Ed Zajac has also been nicked up a bit lately and is doubtful for tonight’s game. Zajac is averaging 3.5 points and 5.3 boards.

DA’s World: Senior stalwart DeMario Anderson has established himself as one of the most prolific scorers in NCAA Division-I basketball this season. Anderson is averaging 20.4 points, despite being saddled with foul trouble in multiple games. Against Cornell, Anderson scored 20 points–in the second half. Anderson is averaging 23.8 points through the past five games. He hung 28 points (on 12-for-22 FG) on Robert Morris in last week’s 86-79 overtime loss.

Let’s Get Rutty: Freshman Center Justin Rutty was selected as the Northeast Conference Rookie of the Week following the week of Jan. 7. Rutty, a Newburgh, N.Y. native, averaged 9.7 points and 6.7 boards. Rutty scored the first six points of the RMU game, finishing with ten first-half points. The 6-foot-7 lefty was neutralized in the second half, however, finishing with 12 points and six caroms. Rutty has shown promise this season, shooting over 50 percent from the floor. In order to emerge into one of the Northeast Conference’s elite big men, though, his free throw shooting must improve. Rutty has been a vintage Shaq at the charity stripe this season, shooting just a thread above 37 percent.

Mount St. Mary’s (7-8, 3-1 NEC) heads into the TD Banknorth Sports Complex tonight looking to avenge a loss from last season. Quinnipiac handed the Mount a 70-62 loss in a game which saw then-senior Victor Akinyanju (who is currently playing professionally in Portugal) erupt for 20 points and 21 rebounds last February.

The Mount has dropped three of their last four, most recently suffering a 81-67 wash-out to NBA prospect Blake Griffin and Oklahoma.

The Bobcats must clamp down on sharpshooter Chris Vann (16.1 ppg). Vann scored 28 against the ‘Cats in the first meeting between the teams last season, a Mount St. Mary’s victory. The Mount is led by smurf-size point guard Jeremy Goode (14 PPG, 6.4 APG), one of the NEC’s best passers.

-Zach Smart

Captains lead Bobcats to conference win

Captains lead Bobcats to conference win
by Seth Rothman
January 6, 2008 

When the spotlights went on, the lights blackened out, and the Bobcats took the ice on Sunday afternoon at the TD Banknorth Sports Center, Rand Pecknold’s club was led out by an unfamiliar face.

Freshman Pat McGann led the team, wearing their gold jerseys, onto the ice. The starting goaltender is always the first person on the ice, and on Sunday, McGann got his first collegiate start.

The reason for McGann’s start, according to sources, stemmed from a minor groin injury suffered by junior goaltender Bud Fisher during Friday’s contest against Harvard. Fisher is expected back in the crease for next weekend’s action against Brown and Yale.

Once on the ice, Quinnipiac (11-5-3, 4-3-3 ECAC) skated to a 5-3 victory over Dartmouth College (5-7-1, 2-6-1 ECAC) in a game televised by NESN in front of 2,563 at the TD Banknorth Sports Center.

It was a game that, for the first thirteen minutes, got off to a slow start. But then, Dartmouth struck quickly. The Big Green scored two goals within 52 seconds on tallies by Connor Shields and Rob Pritchard.

But this was a game Quinnipiac needed. After tying Harvard on Friday, coach Rand Pecknold knew he couldn’t let his team go down without a fight.

“Usually I have a lot to say, but today I just thought our energy wasn’t good, so I just wanted to calm them down,” Pecknold told WQUN’s John Chagaris. “I give a lot of credit to our captains, they did a good job getting our guys back into the game.”

Whatever the captains said — it didn’t even come close to what they did on the ice.

One minute fifty-two seconds after Dartmouth’s second tally, assistant captain Dan Henningson took a blast from just above the right faceoff circle. His shot was deflected by Ben Nelson past Dartmouth goaltender Matt Devine for the Bobcats first goal of the game.

The leadership wasn’t done.

Two minutes and twelve seconds into the second period, Henningson fed captain Jamie Bates behind the net. He found sophomore Eric Lampe streaking towards the net, fed the Madison, Wisconsin native the puck, and Lampe deftly tied the game.

But the leadership still wasn’t done.

After Dartmouth took a 3-2 lead early in the third period, Henningson did it again.

He fed sophomore Jean-Marc Beaudoin, who blasted one towards the  net on the power play. His shot was deflected aside by Devine, but the rebound was corraled by Brandon Wong. He found twine for his 4th goal of the season, and the Bobcats had tied the game.

Three minutes thirty-three seconds later, the Bobcats took the lead for good. Brandon Wong skated through center, and somehow found Dan Travis while being hassled. Travis knocked the pass out of mid-air and found Beaudoin in front for the goal that proved to be the game winner.

After being forced to kill two penalties off in the final 7 minutes, Beaudoin struck again with an empty net goal with 31 seconds left, and Quinnipiac had a hard earned 5-3 victory.

After the game, however, Pecknold had high praise for his goaltender McGann.

“I thought he was good,” Pecknold said. “He was a little nervous in the beginning, but he played well enough to win, and that’s what you want to do.”

“I was a little nervous at the start, but I settled in pretty nice and the guys played unbelievable in front of me,” McGann told Chagaris. “I couldn’t ask for a better game from them.”

It was a hard working game that saw the Bobcats out-shoot Dartmouth 34-23. McGann knows he has to get better if he wants to crack the starting line-up when Fisher comes back, presumably next weekend.

“I let in at least one soft goal which I wasn’t happy about, but the guys came back and scored two for me and then the empty netter. It’s a great feeling right now,” McGann said. “It wasn’t a great start for me, but I knew as long as I gave us a chance to win, the guys would come through for me, and they did.”

Quinnipiac is back in action on Friday when they travel to Brown. Saturday, the Bobcats come back to town, but travel just down the road to New Haven for their first game of the season against Yale. Both games are 7pm starts.

NOTES: In addition to the goal, Wong finished with 2 assists… Henningson’s three assist game is the first by a Bobcat since February 17 when Wong did it… Quinnipiac outshot Dartmouth 16-7 in the third… McGann played all 60 minutes in Quinnipiac’s exhibition win over Ryerson, but that was not an official game, and stats didn’t count in the official ledger. He also got some time in Quinnipiac’s early season loss to Cornell… The Bobcats are now tied for 4th in ECAC Hockey with 11 points. Clarkson, Harvard, and Princeton are in a 3-way-tie for first place with 12 points… Quinnipiac doesn’t play another home game until January 25 when they start a two game series against Niagara in Hamden.

Colonials knock off Bobcats

Colonials knock off Bobcats
By Michael T. Lyle, Jr.
WQAQ.com Sports
January 5, 2007

HAMDEN — A new year has begun, yet the Bobcats still have some old problems from the past they’ll need to do away with if they plan to compete for the Northeast Conference title.

Those same problems resulted in another setback for Quinnipiac on Saturday against Robert Morris.  In front of a national TV audience on ESPNU, the Bobcats started off slow, fell behind, then played “catch-up” and eventually caught up with the Colonials.

But throw in a few costly turnovers on some key possessions in the final minutes and some clutch shooting by Robert Morris’ guards A.J. Jackson and Tony Lee, the result was a 86-79 defeat in front of 1,164 at the TD Banknorth Sports Center.

“We got out-toughed and lost to a tough-minded, offensive team,” said a dejected Quinnipiac head coach Tom Moore.  “We didn’t do enough defensively, particularly in the first half.  They were the more confident team today.”

DeMario Anderson led all scores with 28 points on 5-of-6 shooting, but it was Jackson and Lee who helped the Colonials fight off a Bobcat rally as they combined to score nine points to turn a 64-58 lead into an 80-70 advantage in the final six minutes of the contest.  Jackson paced Robert Morris with 21 points and Lee added 17.  

“We’ve been waiting for him to have a breakout year,” said Robert Morris head coach Mike Rice of Jackson.  “Tonight was refreshing because of our constant effort to get him the ball more.”

Both teams made most of the first 20 minutes interesting, as they traded buckets until Jeremy Chappell’s jumper gave Robert Morris (10-5, 2-1 NEC) a 19-15 lead with under 10:30 to play.  A Jackson three-pointer, followed by a turnaround jumper by Bateko Francisco opened up a 27-17 advantage.

James Feldeine then helped key an 8-0 run for Quinnipiac (6-8, 2-1) as he knocked down a three-pointer, then converted on a bucket to cut the deficit to 36-32 at the 5:34 mark. Back-to-back baskets by DeMario tied it at 37-all with two minutes remaining. The half ended with a bank shot three-pointer by Francisco, putting the Colonials up 42-39.

The intensity continued in the second half, as buckets by Chappell and Jimmy Langhurst extended the lead to 58-47 early in the period.  DeMario and Brian Geffen would rally the hosts as a three-pointer by Geffen, followed by a three-point play by DeMario brought the Bobcats to within 69-68 at the 5:19 mark before Jackson and Lee later sealed the win for Robert Morris.

Rutty finished with 12 points, including 10 in the first half, while Feldeine chipped in 12.  Langhurst contributed 15 points for the Colonials.

Shooting wasn’t much of a problem for both teams as the Bobcats and Colonials each shot only a shade over 50 percent for the contest. Quinnipiac, however, was hurt by 14 turnovers and shot a dismal 5-of-14 from beyond the arc.

“If we can grow from this and become better, it’ll be fine in this league,” said Moore. ”The potential is there, but this was a big game for us because we had a few guys who had never been in a game like this.”

NOTES: The Bobcats played this one without senior guard Casey Cosgrove, who sat out because of a back injury.  Moore said that it wasn’t anything serious, and that Cosgrove should be back in time for Thursday’s contest against Mount Saint Mary’s.

Banged up Bobcats tie Harvard

Banged up Bobcats tie Harvard
by Seth Rothman
January 5, 2008 

HAMDEN — It was another on-again off-again effort for the Quinnipiac Bobcats.

Fortunately for Quinnipiac, it did not add up to another loss. Instead, the Bobcats (10-5-3, 3-3-3 ECAC) skated to a 3-3 tie with the Harvard Crimson (6-6-3, 5-3-2 ECAC) in front of 3,392 at the TD Banknorth Sports Center in Hamden on Friday night.

The contest started well for the homestanding Bobcats.

11:34 into the opening stanza, Dan Travis sent the puck towards Harvard netminder Kyle Richter. After Richter made the original save, Brandon Wong had a whack at it. When he couldn’t put it home on the near side, Bryan Leitch tried on the far side. Bingo — 1-0 Bobcats.

Fifty-three seconds later, the Bobcats struck again. After Leitch got the puck deep, Jamie Bates found Ben Nelson streaking through the slot. Nelson took the puck on the fore-hand, switched to the back-hand, and roofed it past Richter for a quick 2-0 lead.

After Harvard’s Michael Biega cashed in on a 2 v 1 opportunity with 3:57 left in the first, Dan Travis capitalized on a bad rebound given up by Richter. Brandon Wong took a shot from the point, and the puck squirted into the slot. Travis was right there for his sixth of the season with 16.3 seconds remaining in the first.

Despite the Bobcats 3-1 lead after one frame, Bobcats head coach Rand Pecknold was not pleased with his team’s effort.

“I wasn’t really happy with how we played the first,” Pecknold said. “I know we were up 3-1, but I thought we were very sloppy defensively, didn’t take care of our defensive zone very well, and sluggish on the back-check. What we did do well, when we got chances, we finished. We got the puck to the net – got some pretty dynamic kids that can make plays when they get a chance.”

“I thought the first 10-15 minutes we weren’t executing very well,” Harvard coach Ted Donato said. “I think we had breakdowns that allowed them to get outnumbered rushes. After that, we did a better job.”

“We’ve been talking about getting a better start these past few games,” Crimson senior captain Mike Taylor said. “We come out the first one or two shifts really good, but then we end up taking a string of penalties that kills our momentum. Today we came out flat. I don’t know if it was the bus legs or traveling, but we definitely need to improve our start. We were a little sloppy, and we didn’t have a lot of energy in the first period.”

Once again for the Bobcats, the intensity — or lack thereof — was a factor.

“I just don’t think our intensity was where it needed to be,” Pecknold said. “Our commitment to winning wasn’t where it needed to be.”

“Overall, it wasn’t what we expected,” Travis said. “Coming off a good weekend at Vermont, we were expecting a little more intensity. We just didn’t have it tonight. We were fortunate to get a point; we’re always happy to get a point in this league.”

Both coach and player agreed that part of the blame for the Bobcats lack of intensity had to do with the emotional high of winning the Catamount Cup.

“A little letdown from the weekend, we were on a pretty good high from the weekend and maybe we thought things would come a little easier than they did tonight,” Travis said. “We’ll get out of here with a tie, take the point, and look forward to Dartmouth.”

“We did not have a good week of practice this week. Tuesday and Thursday’s practices were atrocious and it translated into our game Friday night,” Pecknold said. ”I thought we had it going, we’ve won five in a row, and our intensity had been great in all five of those games. It was excellent last weekend in Vermont. You wish there was a light switch you can flip on and off, but there’s not.”

Meanwhile, the other locker room was much more relieved with the result after Harvard scored two second period goals to tie the game.

“I’m proud of the way our guys battled,” Donato said. “We dug ourselves a hole early on, but really competed for the last fifty minutes, really. We dug in; it was a heck of an effort the rest of the way.”

For Quinnipiac, the injuries on the blue line are starting to take its toll. Senior Matt Sorteberg, junior Mark Nelson, and freshman Jake Bauer all did not dress for Friday’s game due to various injuries, and none of them are expected to play on Sunday.

“We’re so short-handed right now with the injuries that we have,” Pecknold said. “Bates played tonight, but he’s practiced twice in a month (due to a concussion) and he was out of gas tonight; he struggled with his conditioning. We need to play so hard, and have great intensity to overcome the kids we have out of the lineup.”

Harvard, who employed very hard hitting throughout the game, nearly added to Quinnipiac’s M.A.S.H. unit. With 8:46 remaining in the third, Harvard senior David MacDonald hit Bobcats junior Bryan Leitch high, taking a penalty and briefly sending a dazed Leitch to the bench. The first line winger missed a shift and returned to the game shortly thereafter.

“That’s something we always try to focus on,” Taylor said. “It helps us play our game better, which is dump it in and forecheck teams. The more we establish the body, the more other teams tend to back off. That’s something we try to do every game, but some games, like tonight, we do it better than others.”

“They have some big, strong kids that are physical,” Pecknold said. “They were trying to finish their checks, and they did a good job at that.”

As WQAQ reported earlier on Friday, another big story coming into action today is the dismissal of goaltender Peter Vetri, who has been dismissed from the University due to academic reasons.

“The only comment I’ll make on that is that he was dismissed because he didn’t handle his academic responsibilities,” Pecknold said.

The loss of Vetri means junior Bud Fisher will now likely get nearly every start for the rest of the season, should he stay healthy. It’s a situation reminiscent of last year when Fisher started all but one game, and Pecknold isn’t worried.

“Bud Fisher’s pretty good too, and Pat McGann is a really good goaltender, so we’ll be fine,” Pecknold said.  “Bud played well last weekend, and played great again tonight.”

Certainly, the goaltending was not the problem for the Bobcats on Friday. In fact, Pecknold put the blame squarely on his team defense — not just the blue-liners, but the forwards in their own zone.

“All sixty minutes we were sluggish from a defensive standpoint,” Pecknold said. “Our forwards and our D-core struggled a little bit, and we just didn’t get the offensive opportunities in the second or third periods that we did in the first.”

As he’s been forced to do often this season, Pecknold was highly complimentary of his opponent.

“[Harvard] played well. They’re well coached; they got a ton of talent,” Pecknold said. “They’re not ranked right now, but I think they’re a top 20 team in the nation, and they showed it tonight. They played a great road game, they battled back from down 3-1, you have to be impressed with how they played tonight.”

So now, the Bobcats have to get ready for Dartmouth on Sunday. Pecknold says he’s happy the team has the extra unusual day off.

“After tonight’s game, I love it. We need a day to recover,” Pecknold said. “I think it’s better for the student-athlete. You only get so many games during a year, and to play them back-to-back, sometimes you waste opportunities.”

“[We need to] remember what we did when we played Vermont,” Travis said. “Get the puck in deep, work hard, try and get pucks to the net, I don’t know what we had for shots tonight, but it definitely wasn’t enough (20). Do what we do well, keep the game simple, and I think we’ll be fine.”

Peter Vetri off Bobcats roster

Edited with new information 

Peter Vetri off Bobcats roster
by Seth Rothman
January 4, 2008

HAMDEN — Bobcats junior goaltender Peter Vetri has been kicked off the team due to academic reasons, sources tell WQAQ.

Vetri, according to sources, did not keep his grades in line with Quinnipiac’s academic standards. According to the Quinnipiac Student Handbook, a student must maintain a 2.0 GPA to remain in good academic standing.

Members of Quinnipiac’s Sports Information Office refused comment when asked on Friday about Vetri’s dismissal from the roster. According to Bobcats coach Rand Pecknold, Vetri has been dismissed from the University.

Vetri was not listed on the line charts provided by Quinnipiac, and was not at the TD Banknorth Sports Center for Friday’s game against 15th ranked Harvard. The only goaltenders that dressed for the contest were starter Bud Fisher, and seldom-used backup Pat McGann.

“The only comment I’ll make on that is that he was dismissed because he didn’t handle his academic responsibilities,” Pecknold said.

For the season, Vetri posted a 2.09 GAA, and a .914 save percentage after transferring from UMass Lowell before last season.

Stay with the WQAQ sports site for more on this story as it develops.