WSOC NEC’s on the Bobcats Sports Network

WQAQ will take its broadcast on the road for the first time this season, when we bring to you the semifinals of the Women’s Soccer NEC Tournament from the campus of Central Connecticut State University.  You can hear tomorrow’s game between Quinnipiac and Monmouth on the WQAQ Soccer Stream.  Mike Radomski and Robin Schuppert will call all the action for you, with the opening kickoff scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Friday.  Then, at 6:00 p.m., head back to the soccer stream for the last Men’s Soccer regular season contest of the year.  That game will also be broadcast live from CCSU.

Three Bobcats Teams in Action

Sunday is a busy day on the Bobcats Sports Network presented by WQAQ.  First, at noon, tune in to the field hockey stream to hear Andrew Gau and Ross Montolio call Quinnipiac vs. St. Francis (PA).  Then, at 1 p.m., Corey Hersch and John Muzzy will have Women’s Soccer against St. Francis (PA) on the soccer stream.  Finally, at 2 p.m., the Bobcats Volleyball team will take on Farleigh Dickinson.  Mike Radomski and Glenn Taylor will have that game on the volleyball stream.

Bobcats stay in playoff hunt with 4-2 win

By Robin Schuppert

HAMDEN –  Unceasing rain flooded the Bobcats soccer field on Sunday afternoon, and by the end, it was the closest thing to having a pool at Quinnipiac.

Freshman Jillian Strassner scored once and had two assists to help lead the Quinnipiac women’s soccer team past Wagner College 4-2.  The win moves the Bobcats to third place in the Northeast Conference, where the top four teams make it to the NEC tournament.

“This has been a tremendous week for us,” said Bobcats head coach Dave Clarke. “We were 1-9-2 in the last three years [in this conference week] and now we picked up three wins and a draw out of this week, so we picked up 10 points out of 12 where we previously picked up five out of 36. So we put ourselves in the driving seat to be where we want to be for the next month.”

Jillian Strassner scored her fourth goal of the season in the 19^th minute off a corner from Sophomore Fortuna Velaj. Strassner was in a pack of players just outside the 6-yard box and jumped the highest to head the ball into the top right corner of the goal. Velaj was credited with her sixth assist on the season.

Eight minutes before halftime the Bobcats doubled their lead. Strassner collected her first assist of the season when she stole the ball from a Wagner defender and dropped it off to a wide open Shauna Edwards. The freshman Edwards, just inside the 18-yard box, shot a low ball that went off the goalie Jen Emigholz’s hands and rolled into the lower left corner of the goal. Edwards picked up her second goal of the season.

The Bobcats kept their foot on the pedal in the second half and scored a goal just five minutes into the half. This time Strassner charged down the left side of the field and crossed a ball into the middle of the box. Senior Amber Sidoti just had to tap the ball into the back of the net for her first goal of the season. It was Strassner’s second assist of the game.

In the 61^st minute the Seahawks got some help from the weather to cut the deficit to 3-1. Monica Zurich sent a harmless looking ball up field just out of the reach of Briana Vassallo. The Bobcats goalie Elizabeth Cook kneeled down to collect the ball, but had it slip out of her hands. Vassallo was the first to recover and pushed the ball into the lower left corner of the goal.

13 minutes later Vassallo connected for her second goal of the game to cut the Bobcats lead to one. This time Julie Vigliotti sent a ball from midfield down the left side to a charging Vassallo. The junior forward ran inside the box and drilled the ball into the top left corner to beat Cook.

The Bobcats didn’t seem shocked and scored the final goal a minute later in the 75^th minute. Fortuna Velaj curved a nice cross from the right side into the box that was originally caught by Wagner’s goalie. Emigholz couldn’t hold on to the wet ball and it dropped right in front of the feet of senior Lindsay Oliveri. Oliveri kicked the ball into the bottom left corner for the 4-2 final. It was her first career goal, and Velaj picked up her team leading seventh assist.

The Bobcats had a season high 29 shots and won for the fourth time in their last five games. They improve to 5-5-1 overall, and 4-1-1 in the NEC.

Wagner registered 9 shots in the loss and drops to 1-12-2 overall and 0-6-1 in the NEC.

Elizabeth Cook recorded 3 saves and improved to 4-0-1 since winning the starting job for the Bobcats.

“I knew she had potential. It was more of a tactical change in terms of bringing her in ahead of Kendra [Margulies], who had done well. It was because of the games against Sacred Heart on turf that Biz placed a little bit higher. It’s worked out well,” said Clarke.

On the other side, Jen Emigholz recorded 11 saves in a losing effort.

The Bobcats now have 13 points in the NEC, three points behind Monmouth and Central Connecticut State University for first place.

Next weekend the Bobcats will go on road for their final two road games of the regular season. They will take on Mount St. Mary’s on Friday, October 23 at 7 p.m. On Sunday, October 25 they will take on Monmouth at 1 p.m.

Two Games on WQAQ Sports Stream Simultaneously

Women’s Soccer and Field Hockey are both in action today at noon.  Women’s Soccer can be heard on the soccer stream, with Marc Schwartz and John Muzzy on the call.  The Field Hockey game will be on the field hockey stream, with Andrew Gau and Tom Butto calling all the action.

WSOC on the Air Today

Women’s Soccer is on the air today, taking on Long Island University.  The broadcast can be heard on the soccer stream, and it will start at 2:55 p.m.  Mike Radomski and Robin Schuppert will be on the call.

Postgame interview audio now available

If you want to hear the post game audio from any Quinnipiac home games, just head to the Quinnipiac Athletics website, click on the “Photos and New Media” tab at the top of the page, and click on the appropriate sport. Recent uploads include interviews with;

Men’s soccer head coach Eric Da Costa and goalkeeper Freddy Hall following their 3-0 win over St. Francis (PA) this weekend.

Women’s ice hockey head coach Rick Seeley after their 4-1 season opening win against Sacred Heart

Coach Dave Clarke of the women’s soccer team discussing his team’s 1-0 double OT win over Bryant on Sunday Afternoon.

You can also subscribe to Quinnipiac athletics on iTunes and find these postgame interviews there as well.

- Jamie Palatini

Bobcats end season with 1-0 loss to CCSU

By Bobby Schilling

 

(HAMDEN, Conn.)—It’s not the way they would have wanted to end the season, but the Quinnipiac women’s soccer team finished off their season Sunday with a 1-0 loss to Central Connecticut State University.  The lone goal of the game was scored near the end of the first half by junior Leah Blayney for the victorious Blue Devils.

 

The majority of the first half was spent in the Bobcats’ defensive zone as CCSU controlled the majority of possession.  To the untrained eye it would have seemed like CCSU was dominating the game, but Quinnipiac head coach Dave Clarke disagreed.

 

“I really didn’t see it that way,” he said. “Sometimes it looks that way, but we let them have the ball.  We weren’t really letting them go forward.  It was more of conceding possession.  I thought we created better scoring chances.”

 

And the Bobcats did indeed get some golden scoring opportunities despite having less possession.  They exposed the Blue Devils on some fast-paced counterattacks, and freshman Furtuna Velaj was literally inches away from scoring.  With 20 minutes remaining in the first half, Velaj got to the ball and put a shot on net.   CCSU senior goalkeeper Erin Herd made a diving play to deflect the ball, which then trickled past her and hit the post.  However, it did not cross the goal line, and the game remained scoreless.

 

The Blue Devils took advantage with 10 minutes left in the first half.  On a scramble in the QU box, Blayney got free and ripped a shot into the net.  She was assisted by junior Jessica Davies.

 

In the second half, the Bobcats came out with a lot of energy. The game also got very physical, as the two teams combined for 12 fouls.  Unfortunately for QU, they were not able to get the equalizer, and they fell by a final of 1-0.

 

Despite the season-ending loss, Clarke was very proud of his team.  “That’s our best performance of the year,” he said.  “To play as well as we did and dominate the second half, that’s a lot to build off of and a lot to be proud of.”

 

The Bobcats finish the season with a mark of 7-7-2 (3-4-2), and will just miss out on the NEC tournament.

Bulldogs take bite out of Bobcats

 

By: Bobby Schilling

(HAMDEN, Conn.) – The Bryant University Bulldogs outlasted the QU women’s soccer team Wednesday, 1-0.  Freshman forward Brooke Duchaney delivered the blow for Bryant with 28 seconds to play in the game.

 

The cold and frigid weather did not seem to affect Bryant as they seemed to control possession for the majority of the game.  Most of the first half was spent on the Bobcats’ defending side of the field, but Bryant had nothing to show for it.

 

The second half saw more of the same, but despite Bryant’s ball control, QU came out with some excellent scoring chances.  Freshman Furtuna Velaj got a one-on-one opportunity with Bulldog goalkeeper Jessica Clark, who made a diving stop as Velaj tried to dribble around her.  A few minutes later, junior Susan Donovan had a similar chance for the Bobcats, but her chip attempt was tipped up and over the net by Clark.

 

Quinnipiac keeper Jillian Kelley played superbly in net for the Bobcats, showing off her hands on a vast array of free kicks by Bryant.   Unfortunately for QU, she could not keep it up for 28 seconds longer.  On a broken play at the end of the game that saw two Bulldogs in front of the net and no Bobcats, Duchaney was able to flick a header past Kelley for the win.

 

Quinnipiac head coach Dave Clarke credited the Bulldogs saying “Bryant deserved the win.”  He went on to express his disappointment with his team, saying, “We got exactly what we deserved out of the game, which was nothing.”

 

The Bobcats drop to 7-6-2 (3-3-2) while Bryant moves to 5-9-3.  The Bobcats final regular season game is at home on Sunday at noon against CCSU.  The Bobcats need a win and some help to keep their NEC playoff hopes alive.

Bobcats Defeat Sacred Heart, Get Weekend Sweep

By: Bobby Schilling

(Hamden, CONN.) – The women’s soccer team earned a much-needed sweep this weekend as they followed up their win on Friday with a 3-0 victory over Sacred Heart University on Sunday. Freshmen Furtuna Velaj and Chelsea Smith scored for the Bobcats, as did sophomore Meghan McLoughlin. Bobcat assists were recorded by McLoughlin, junior Amber Sidoti and senior Danielle Nugent.

Play early was slow and choppy, with many fouls and throw-ins, but the Bobcats finally found their rhythm 12 minutes into the game when Velaj chipped a ball in the box over Sacred Heart’s charging goalkeeper.

SHU had no time to recover as McLoughlin buried a loose ball into the net just over a minute later, and it was all but over from there.

Smith capped off the half for QU with only seven seconds left, as she used her head to deflect a free kick from Nugent past the keeper and giving the Bobcats a 3-0 halftime lead.

The pace slowed for Quinnipiac in the second half and SHU was able to hold possession and get some scoring opportunities, but the defense held strong and Jillian Kelley was brilliant in net. The end result never seemed to be in doubt.

QU head coach Dave Clarke discussed his team’s approach to the remaining games. “If we get two more wins, that’s great. If we make into the playoffs, we’ll accept it. But if not, it’s important that we lay a foundation for next year,” he said.

The Bobcats move to 7-5-2 (3-3-2) as Sacred Heart drops to 1-14-1 (0-6-1). QU will look to finish the season strong as they host Bryant on Wednesday (3 pm) and then CCSU in their final game next Sunday at 1 p.m.

QU Outplays Farleigh Dickinson to end skid

By: Bobby Schilling

(Hamden, CONN.) – The women’s soccer team got back on the winning track Friday afternoon as they defeated Farleigh Dickinson University, 4-1.   The victory snapped the Bobcats’ five-game conference winless streak.  Freshman Furtuna Velaj and sophomore Meghan McLoughlin shined for the Bobcats as they each scored twice.  Velaj and sophomore Kyle Miles also had one assist each.

 The Bobcats inflicted their will upon the Knights from the opening whistle, although they didn’t capitalize on any opportunities until 20 minutes in, when McLoughlin put a header in the back of the net off a cross from Velaj.

 FDU was able to respond just three minutes later, when sophomore Lisa-Marie Curti advanced past the defense to get her head on a free kick into the box to knot the score at one goal apiece. 

 Velaj regained the lead for the Bobcats with under 17 minutes to play in the half when she used some fancy footwork to elude defenders in the corner and fire a rocket into the back of the net.  This time, however, the Knights would not have an answer.

 In the second half, QU continued to dominate.  McLoughlin and Velaj each tacked on another goal, securing the 4-1 victory.

 The offensive outpouring came after the Bobcats had been held scoreless in their previous two games.  McLoughlin said that the key was to play free and without any pressure. “We didn’t go out saying we have to win, we just went out and had fun and played as a team,” she said.

 QU head coach Dave Clarke expressed the importance of the win.  “We need to make teams eliminate us; we didn’t want to lose today and get knocked out [of possible post-season competition],” he said. 

 Quinnipiac improves to 6-5-2 (2-3-2) with the win, and FDU falls to 6-9-0 (3-3-0).  The Bobcats host Sacred Heart at noon on Sunday in their final home game of the season as they look to make a push for the Northeast Conference tournament.

 “I guarantee none of the other three teams would want to play us in the semifinal,” Clarke said.