Bobcats Play at Neighboring Yale Invitational

Bobcats Play at Neighboring Yale Invitational
By Jeremy Schilling
April 11, 2008

HAMDEN — The Quinnipiac Bobcats Golf team finished 22nd out of 27 teams at last weekend’s Yale Men’s Spring Open at the Yale Golf Club in New Haven. The tournament, played over 2 days, was played in 180 degree different weather conditions, with Saturday’s play in bright, warm sunshine, and Sunday’s feeling like it was winter again.

The Bobcats finished with a team score of 629. Howard University won the team event overall, shooting a 585. They were followed in second place by Skidmore College who had a score of 587.

Individually for the Bobcats they were led by Brady Giroux, who finished in a tie for 40th with a 2-day score of 150. He was followed by Jayson Loranger with 156, Ian O’Connor with 158, and Kyle Chumas with 161, Charlie Niland with 163, and Ryan Reynolds with 165.

The Bobcats continue their 2008 spring season this weekend with The New England’s at the Triggs Memorial Golf Course in Providence, Rhode Island.

Rick Seeley announced as new women’s hockey coach

Rick Seeley announced as new women’s hockey coach
by Seth Rothman
April 8, 2008

HAMDEN — Rick Seeley was announced as the new women’s ice hockey coach at Quinnipiac in a conference call on Tuesday afternoon.

This past season, Seeley led the Clarkson University women’s team to the #9 spot in the USCHO.com poll, compiling a 24-9-5 record, including an 11-3-2 mark in ECAC Hockey. His Knights lost in the ECAC Hockey semi-finals to Harvard, the eventual national runner-up in the NCAA Tournament. 

“The feeling I got when I interviewed and toured the campus was really attractive. I believe Quinnipiac is one of the best kept secrets in the northeast, and I’m exited by the progressive vision that [University President] John Lahey, [Athletic Director] Jack [McDonald], and [Vice President for Athletic Marketing and External Relations] Val [Belmonte] share,” Seeley said. “I look forward to bringing the women’s hockey program up to the standards that are expected at Quinnipiac. Hopefully it won’t be the best kept secret for long.”

“We are thrilled — Rick comes to us with great success in the ECAC, great success at Manhattanville, he’s had some time as a men’s hockey coach and player, and knows the game as well as anybody,” McDonald said, “He comes with great references from the rest of collegiate ice hockey.”

Seeley has been a head coach at the collegiate level since 1998-99, when he led the formation of the women’s program at Manhattanville (D-III). After compiling a 54-16-4 record there, he moved to Clarkson for the 2002-03 season, and coached the team during its first season of play in 2003-04.

“With change comes renewed excitement,” Seeley said. “I know nothing about the situation before, I know nothing about the players beyond breaking down video, but I have to assume that they’re going to be excited about new challenges. Whatever’s there, I think we’re all going to work together, and they’ll start experiencing successes.”

In his time at Clarkson, Seeley was 93-57-18. He admits there will be some emotion when he coaches against his former team next season.

“I’m leaving a group that I love and adore. They were strong this year with a great recruiting class,” Seeley said. “They’re going to be exceptional [next year]. I’ll be their biggest fan for all but two games a year. The problem is I know they’re going to be geared up to kick our butts, too. It was a real tough decision to leave [Clarkson], but a really easy one to come to Quinnipiac.”

Seeley has only once struggled through an under .500 season, going 13-17-6 in 2004-05. He says he hopes to bring that success to Quinnipiac when he starts recruiting — last night, as he joked.

“I anticipate a group that’s excited for a new challenge and wanting to be a part of it. Beyond that, I don’t know the kids,” Seeley said. “I look forward to getting to meet them next week, but there’s not one set formula. Any good coach is going to adjust. I have to adjust to the new personnel on this team, and they have to adjust to me. I look forward to meeting them.”  

Seeley admits the TD Banknorth Sports Center was a big reason for him to take the job. However, he realizes there is quite a bit of work to get Quinnipiac to the lofty heights the Knights were at. Quinnipiac finished the 2007-08 season with the 5th worst winning percentage in D-I women’s hockey.

“Facilities can’t do it on their own. I hadn’t been to the campus — we just rushed in for a game this year up on the hill and left, so I had never seen the campus,” Seeley said. “The feeling I got {when he toured campus during his interview), just the genuine positive aura of [campus], whether it was the students there, or people working is what really attracted me. That’s the kind of environment I really wanted to be a part of. I just don’t think there’s many out there like it.”

Now, the work begins. Seeley understands things have not been good for this program, but he said he is clearly determined to change that.

“The cupboard’s pretty bare at this point. It’s a pretty unique year in that most institutions did their recruiting early,” Seeley said. ”There are still potential student athletes out there that can help our program next year. I have been talking to a number of those players and coaches. I think we should be able to bring in four or five key players for next year.”

“I don’t think in women’s hockey the facility is going to get it done for you. I think it’s an amazing vehicle to recruiting and marketing, but it’s not the ultimate. That said, now that I’m at Quinnipiac, and I have that to work with, it’s a facility that’s second to none, so there’s no excuse when it comes to that.”

Contract terms were not disclosed.  

The addition of Seeley was necessary when Quinnipiac’s former coach, Michael Barrett, accepted a new position in Alumni Affairs at the University last month. It is unknown whether Barrett’s assistants, Matt Kelly and Lisa Giovanelli, will be retained by Seeley.

Bobcats Bounce Back, Sweep FDU Knights

Bobcats Bounce Back, Sweep FDU Knights
by Tom Butto
April 7, 2008

HAMDEN — A day after the Quinnipiac University softball team lost both games of a double header to in-state rival Sacred Heart University, the Bobcats stepped onto the field and swept the Knights of Fairleigh Dickinson University on Sunday.

The Bobcats (13-24, 3-5 NEC) won the first game in the double header against the NEC opponent 4-2.

The Knights (5-12, 1-5) put up the first run of the game in the fifth inning off of Quinnipiac starter Kristin Sheriff when FDU’s starting pitcher, Trina Fields, hit a home run deep to left center field.

The Bobcats did not take much longer to strike back, when in the bottom of the fifth inning, Quinnipiac did the little things to manufacture a run. After Kelly Wall hit a double to lead off the inning, Heather Maffeo laid down a sacrifice bunt to move wall to third, and Carry Simms hit an RBI single to tie the game at 1.

Quinnipiac took command of the game in the sixth inning with an offensive explosion when Sheriff led off the inning with a single, and was replaced on the base paths by Angela Casella. Christine Bourdeau drove home the pinch runner to give the Bobcats a 2-1 lead.

Later in the inning Bourdeau stole third with two outs and Kelly Wall had a clutch two out hit to give them a 3-1 lead and Maffeo drove Wall home for the final run of the inning to give the Bobcats a 4-1 lead.

Kristin Sheriff pitched a complete game for the Bobcats in the winning effort. Sheriff struck out six, walked four, and gave up two earned runs.

While offense was the story of the first game, the second game of the double header was all about pitching for both teams.

Jaimie Iaquinto and Ashley Buchanan battled each other in a pitcher’s duel as both took shut outs into the eighth inning of a regulation seven inning game.

In that eighth inning, the Bobcats looked like they were on the ropes when the Knights scored two runs on Iaquinto, the emerging ace for the Bobcats.

The Bobcats rallied in the bottom of the inning when Quinnipiac’s Joelle Jacobsen scored on an error and another two out clutch RBI base hit by Kelly Wall.

The Bobcats then came up in the bottom of the ninth inning looking to win the game. Carry Simms led off with a walk, and was replaced by pinch runner Julie Sini. Jill Viglione sacrifice bunted Sini to second. The Bobcats’ final clutch base hit came in the form of Emily Bellush’s shot that hit the base of the wall to win the game by a final of 3-2.

Jaimie Iaquinto pitched nine innings for the complete game victory while striking out three, walking three, and giving up two earned runs. Kelly Wall went 3-4 in the game.

Softball Loses Double Header to Pioneers

Softball Loses Double Header to Pioneers
by Tom Butto
April 6, 2008

HAMDEN — The Quinnipiac University softball team lost both games of their double header to in-state rival Sacred Heart University (13-14, 5-1) on a beautiful Saturday afternoon at Bobcat Field.

The Bobcats (11-24, 1-5) ran into a pitching road block and a hitting clinic in the first game in the form of Megan Spehar, a star pitcher on the Pioneers team. Spehar befuddled the Bobcats hitters in a complete game six hit performance. The veteran senior pitcher only gave up one earned run as she painted the outside corner of the paint throughout the game.

The two runs scored by the Bobcats came on a throwing error by Shannon McCoy scoring Jill Viglione from second base. The next run for Quinnipiac came on an RBI single by sophomore outfielder Heather Maffeo to tie the game.

Spehar helped out her own cause with an RBI single in the sixth inning, she also had three hits and scored a run. The pitcher has seven RBI and is batting .228 on the year.

In the second game of the double header, the Bobcats had an equally difficult challenge, going up against the dominating freshman pitcher for the Pioneers, Jen Russell. Before the second game, Russell was 6-7 and had been a workhorse, pitching 86 innings.

Sacred Heart got the same results as Russell, as she pitched six innings, giving up one unearned run on an RBI single by Emily Bellush.

Taylor Frolich, Melissa Mezzanotte, and Shannon McCoy all had two RBI in the winning effort for Sacred Heart.

Bobcats Struggle in Spring Opener

Bobcats Struggle in Spring Opener
By Jeremy Schilling
April 4, 2008

HAMDEN — The Quinnipiac University Bobcats Golf team opened their spring 2008 season with a disappointing 17th place finish out of 20 teams at the George Washington Invitational. The Bobcats combined for a team score of 804. The winner was the University of Maryland who shot a 738, 10 shots ahead of George Washington.

Leading the Bobcats individually was Brady Giroux, who finished 60th overall with a 45-hole score of 199. Ryan Reynolds finished one shot back of him, shooting 200. Rounding it out for the Bobcats were Ian O’Connor, Jayson Loranger, and Ben Cook who all shot 205.

“It’s very difficult to play at the same level as teams that either come from the south or travel to the warm weather to tone up there game during the winter months,” said Head Coach John O’Connor following the end of play. “The kids played pretty well considering though and I believe we’ll see considerable improvement this week at Yale.”

Quinnipiac continues its spring season this weekend with the Yale Invitational at the Yale Golf Course in New Haven. Play begins both days at 9 a.m.

Bulldogs Bludgeon Bobcat Pitching, Yale Wins 19-13

Bulldogs Bludgeon Bobcat Pitching, Yale Wins 19-13
By Jamie Palatini
April 2, 2008

HAMDEN — No, that isn’t a typo. Yale and Quinnipiac combined for 32 runs and 30 hits on a cold, blustery day that saw the Bulldogs outslug the Bobcats 19-13 at Bobcat Field in Hamden. With the win, Yale’s record improves to 9-15-1. Quinnipiac now stands at 5-11.

Yale jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Left-fielder Ryan Lavarnway drove Eric Weber’s curveball deep toward the left center field gap. Ben Farina leaped for the ball at the fence, and as he did so a 20 foot span of the fence collapsed under his weight. Luckily for Quinnipiac, Farina and the fence were okay. It was the 12th home run of the season for Lavarnway who finished the game 3 for 4 with 4 RBIs and 5 runs scored.

Quinnipiac regained the momentum with a big second inning. Catcher Mike Marmo’s double in the left-center field gap scored Joe Poletsky and Mike Bartlett to tie the game at two. After a walk to Brian Monack, Bryn Doyle came up and hit an opposite field single, giving the Bobcats a 3-2 lead. John Delaney was the next batter up, and took Joe Castaldi’s fastball deep over the right field wall, and just like that it was 6-2 Quinnipiac.

However, Yale came back and matched Quinnipiac with six runs of its own in the top of the third. With runners at the corners and nobody out, Dan Soltman hit a ground ball that Delaney threw over the head of first baseman Pete Kummerfeldt to make the score 6-3. Yale followed that up with three straight singles to make the score 6-6. Yale right fielder Jake Doyle then grounded into a double play to score Trigg Larson-Danforth from third, and two batters later Gant Elmore singled up the middle to give Yale the 8-6 lead.

The Bulldogs added four more runs in the top of the fourth inning. Larson-Danforth’s bloop single down the left field line scored two to make it 10-6. Bulldog catcher Davis Stanley then hit a fly ball to right field that the wind carried over the fence to give Yale the 12-6 advantage.

Yale tacked on two more runs in the top of the sixth to increase their lead to 14-6. The Bobcats continued to fight back though, getting an RBI from Farina and two from Bryn Doyle to make the deficit 14-9. Both teams traded runs in the eighth to make the score 16-11, before Yale tacked on three in the top of the ninth for a 19-11 lead. Farina and Blake Barone each had RBIs in the bottom of the inning, but the lead was too much for Quinnipiac to overcome, and Yale came away with the 19-13 win.

The starting pitchers struggled mightily for both squads. Quinnipiac’s Eric Weber allowed eight runs on nine hits in just 2 2-3 innings of work. Yale’s Joe Castaldi, who got the win, didn’t fair much better allowing six runs on five hits over two innings. But Yale’s bullpen outlasted Quinnipiac’s, allowing five earned runs compared to the Bobcats’ bullpen, which allowed 11 runs on 10 hits. Eric Bretscher was the only Bobcat pitcher not to allow a run. Quinnipiac’s pitching staff now boasts a lofty 6.97 team ERA.

The lone bright spot for Quinnipiac was their offense. Eight players had hits, and 10 players scored their 11 runs. Freshman Ben Farina continued his strong opening season at Quinnipiac with three hits and two RBIs, and infielders Doyle and Delaney had four RBIs apiece.

Quinnipiac will look to right the ship this weekend when they start a four-game series in New Britain, Conn. against in-state rival Central Connecticut State. The four-game series will kick off Northeast Conference schedule for both teams, starting on Friday at 4 p.m. at Beehive Field. The teams will play a doubleheader on Saturday before finishing the series on Sunday afternoon.

Bobcats get barbequed at “Beat the Buckeyes Day”

Bobcats get barbequed at “Beat the Buckeyes Day”
By Sam Friedman
March 30, 2008

HAMDEN — The crowd was loud. The food was good. The giant inflatable Bobcat was knocked over by the wind, but it managed to stay upright for the team’s introduction. Unfortunately, the only thing missing from the “Beat the Buckeyes Barbeque” was the beating the Buckeyes part.

In the Great Western Lacrosse League season opener for both teams, the Buckeyes (5-3, 1-0 GWLL) made sure that this one was never close. They led 12-2 at halftime, and won by a final score of 18-7 over the Bobcats (6-1, 0-1 GWLL). Ohio State never trailed in the contest. The Bobcats came into the game ceding just over five goals a game but surrendered that many in the first 13 minutes.

Just 45 seconds in, Ohio State got its first goal when Jeff Ryan passed the ball from behind the net to find Pete Poillon on the wing, who quickly shot it past sophomore goalie Kevin Benzing on the left shoulder side. That was Poillon’s first of three goals on the afternoon. Anthony Poerio tied it for the Bobcats at the four minute mark with an unassisted shot past Buckeyes standout goalie Stefan Schroder, but that was the only time the Bobcats even kept the game close.

The Buckeyes added three goals within the span of 2:54 near the end of the first quarter to take a 4-1 lead, including two man advantage goals. Man advantage goals were a problem for the Bobcats, who surrendered seven man down goals on nine man down situations, including three goals in the final minute of the first half from just one penalty, a one minute illegal body checking penalty against sophomore Bailey Tuthill.

The second quarter opened up the way the first did, with the Buckeyes scoring early – just eight seconds in. Senior captain Kevin Buchanan scooped up a loose ball off the faceoff and fired it past Benzing, again to the left shoulder side from the attack zone line. Buchanan finished with two goals and two assists, and moved into a tie with Jim Ash for 15th on Ohio State’s all time scoring list with 128 points. He leads the team with 22 goals. Buchanan is also tied for 10th in Ohio State history with 55 assists.

After the Buckeyes made the score 9-1, Quinnipiac coach Eric Fekete pulled Benzing and replaced him with backup goalie Ryan Andrews.

“Benzing’s played great all season, [but] he was off today,” Fekete said. “Our goaltending was uncharacteristically weak today, that just kind of started the wheels wobbling.”

Nine seconds into the third quarter Jeff Ryan scooped up a loose ball that was knocked away by teammate Nick Carr and raced past four Bobcats to throw it past Andrews to make the score 13-2. It was Ohio State’s 4th man advantage goal scored on Tuthill’s penalty. Quinnipiac finally got its own man up goal, when Gary Messina took a long pass from Jack Oppenheimer and shot the ball in between traffic, and passed a screened Schroeder, who never saw it.

Each team tallied four goals in the fourth quarter, three of them man advantage goals and the rest even strength. Buckeye James Green drew a three minute penalty to begin the fourth quarter with an Illegal cross, meaning that his stick was considered too narrow for use. Although his penalty was non-releasable, the Bobcats managed just one goal on the man advantage.

Ohio State coach Joe Breschi pulled Schroder at the start of the 4th quarter to give backup goalies Bandon Freeman and Bill Curry playing time once Ohio State had an insurmountable lead.

For Quinnipiac, Garret Kerr was held goal-less for the first time all season. He scored 9 goals in the first three games of the season but has tallied just 4 since.

“They came out and pressured us a bit – they moved the ball really well. I give them (Ohio State) credit,” Coach Fekete said.” We just got to fix some stuff and get ready to go next week.”

But Coach Fekete was not concerned about the long term affect of the loss.

“I’m not going to necessarily put on a parachute and get so concerned. We’re 6-1. You got to realize we’re a pretty good club that had a bad day today,” Fekete said. ”We just got to get out and get ready to play against Sacred Heart.”

The Bobcats have four consecutive road games before returning home to face Bellarmine in the regular season finale on April 26. They face Sacred Heart on Wednesday afternoon, then fly out to Colorado for games on the 11th and 13th against Denver and Air Force respectively. Then, the Bobcats face nationally ranked Notre Dame in South Bend on Friday, April 18. The conference semifinals are May 2-4.

NOTES: Buckeye junior Joel Delgarno had one goal and four assists. He has now scored a point in 35 straight games — a point in every game he has ever played for Ohio State. Buchanan’s goal streak is at 37. … Delgarno now has scored 16 points against the Bobcats, the most by any Buckeye against QU. Buchanan is second with 12. … Four Buckeyes had hat tricks, with Green, Ryan, and Ventiquattro joining Poillon. No Bobcat scored more than twice. … The Bobcats gave up eight 2nd period goals, after giving up 10 goals in the second period all season.

Women’s Lax Ends Skid with a Couple of Wins

Women’s Lax Ends Skid with a Couple of Wins
By TJ Buzzeo
March 30, 2008

HAMDEN - The Quinnipiac Women’s Lacrosse team opened up NEC play on Saturday March 22 with their fourth consecutive loss.

Monmouth University came to Hamden on the 22nd and left with a nail-biting victory. The Bobcats started off strong opening with a 3-0 lead over the Hawks. With 13:24 left in the half Monmouth went on a run, and eventually took the lead 4-3. Sophomore midfielder Lyndsey Banach tied the game at four with her first goal of the season with 5:52 left in the half.

The Hawks outplayed Quinnipiac in the first portion of the second half taking a 9-6 lead after a 3-0 Monmouth run. Quinnipiac scored two quick goals to cut the lead, but the Hawks extended it back to three. The Bobcats would not go down quietly as junior midfielder Ashley Valentine and junior midfielder Tiffany Manzi each scored goals to bring the score to 11-10 in favor of the Hawks. The Bobcats could not push another goal in over the final 4:28 of the game as 11-10 would be the final score in favor of the visitors from New Jersey.

Valentine and junior attack Nicole Fiore each had hat-tricks to lead the Bobcat offense.

Sophomore goalkeeper Hannah Nelson played well for Quinnipiac, stopping 10 shots and putting up a season-high seven groundballs.

The Bobcats got back to their winning ways on Friday March 28, with a victory over NEC rival Long Island.

Quinnipiac came out strong, dominating the first half and taking a 7-1 lead into the break. The second half was more evenly played as the Bobcats again outscored the Blackbirds 7-5, and won the game 14-6.

Three Bobcats put up four points each for the first time this year. Valentine scored four goals in the game, including three in the first half. Senior attack Katy Delagi put up two goals and two assists. Her two goals were the opening and closing goals for the Quinnipiac scoring. Sophomore attack Kelly Bruneau posted one goal and three assists.

Nelson made 10 saves while only giving up five goals before being pulled from the game with 6:50 remaining.

The Bobcats picked up their first NEC win of the season, and snapped a four game losing streak with the win.

On Sunday March 30, the Bobcats continued their winning ways by blowing out the Wagner College Seahawks 23-12 on Long Island.

Wagner took an early 2-1 lead, and then Quinnipiac woke up and scored 11 of the next 14 goals taking a commanding 12-5 lead into halftime. The Seahawks and Bobcats traded four goals apiece to start the second half. Then the Seahawks went on a 3-1 lead making the score 17-12 in favor of Quinnipiac, who washed away any comeback thoughts by scoring the last six goals of the game.

After Manzi did not get any points for the first time all season in the victory over Long Island, she picked up seven in the Wagner game, with four goals and three assists. Valentine put up a six point game with five goals and an assist. Delagi also added six points with a hat-trick and three assists. Fiore also put up a great game with four points — all of them goals.

Nelson had another solid game for the Bobcats posting her fifth consecutive 10 save game and her seventh in eight games.

Valentine and Manzi have been the leaders all season for the Bobcats and their efforts have shown in the NEC rankings. Valentine is third in goals per game (2.88), fourth in points per game (3.50), and sixth in shots per game (5.25). Manzi’s 2.12 goals per game ranks her sixth in the NEC, she is also third in draw controls per game (2.62) and is first in caused turnovers per game (2.00).

Nelson has been very effective in net for Quinnipiac. She ranks third in goals against average (10.71), second in save percentage (.509), fourth in saves per game (10.75), and second in ground balls per game (3.12). She has started all eight games for the Bobcats this season.

The Bobcats are currently 4-4 overall, 2-1 in NEC play, and currently are tied in third with Monmouth in the conference standings. The Bobcats look to improve on those numbers with three straight home games against three NEC rivals. Robert Morris comes to Hamden on April 4, St. Francis (PA) follows on April 6, and Central Connecticut wraps up the homestand on April 9. All three games can be heard on the Bobcats Sports Network presented by WQAQ.

Softball splits NEC double dip against Wagner

Softball splits NEC double dip against Wagner
by Tom Butto
March 30, 2008

HAMDEN – After a rough double header on Saturday that resulted in 8-0 and 7-0 losses to conference foe Long Island University, the Bobcats looked to put up their first conference win of the season, this time against Wagner. They were also looking to break a three-game losing streak.

Quinnipiac (11-20, 1-3 NEC) did get that win in the second game of the double header by beating the Wagner Seahawks (10-11, 0-2 NEC) 5-2.

“We got a lot of veterans on this team,” said Germaine Fairchild, the head coach of the softball team. “Everyone on the team knows that they need to conserve energy and give it their all when conference play comes around.”

The first game started well for the Bobcats, when they took the lead in the bottom of the first inning. Quinnipiac took a 1-0 lead when Christine Bourdeau lined a one out RBI double to left center field, which drove home senior Jill Viglione.

That ended Quinnipiac’s nineteen inning scoreless streak at home, but that was nearly the only good news in game one for the Bobcats. They scored one run in the fourth, one in the fifth and that was it.

The Seahawks touched up Kristin Sheriff for two runs in the next inning. Sheriff walked two batters before Ami Iwicki drove a two out double that plated the two batters that Sheriff walked.

Sheriff was pitching for the second day in a row, after she threw 5 2/3 innings against Long Island University in the last game of yesterday’s double header.

The Bobcats took a 3-2 lead going into the sixth inning. But that is when the wheels came off of the train when Coach Fairchild replaced Sheriff with Emily Bellush, after Sheriff put the first two batters of the inning on base.

Bellush had no control of her pitches, allowing the runners Sheriff put on to score. She also gave up four additional runs and threw four wild pitches.

The Bobcats wound up losing the first game 10-3.

The second game of the double header produced better results as Jaimie Iaquinto took the mound looking to stop the bleeding from the previous three games.

Iaquinto, the right handed sophomore, dazzled the Wagner batters. She struck out ten batters while giving up only two runs on four hits.

In a two inning stretch during the second and third inning, Iaquinto struck out four batters in a row. She struck out Christina Pinkus, Ami Iwicki, and Jamie El-Aazami all looking.

“Jaimie pitched great today in an effort that we really needed,” said Fairchild. “But let’s not forget Brianne Sloane. Behind every pitcher there is a great catcher, and she caught a great game.”

The Bobcats next game is on the road when they take on Rhode Island University. Their next home games are on April 5th and April 6th when Quinnipiac plays conference opponents Sacred Heart and Fairleigh Dickinson. The game on the 5th will be broadcasted by WQAQ.

Men’s tennis swept in NEC opener

Men’s tennis swept in NEC opener
By Andrew Fletcher
March 29, 2008

HAMDEN – Quinnipiac’s men’s tennis team was swept at home by Fairleigh Dickinson in both of the teams’ conference openers Saturday afternoon, dropping all nine matches in the 7-0 defeat. The Bobcats fall to 3-5 (0-1 NEC) and the Knights improve to 6-5 (1-0 NEC).

Only Brian Mikkelson (No. 2) and Tom Curran (No. 5) were able to force third sets in their singles matches, before dropping both. Mikkelson lost to Fairleigh Dickinson’s Matt Gordon, while Curran was handled by Kyle Eddins.

Joe Nuara (No. 6) almost forced a third set in his match, but lost 7-6 in the second set. All of the other singles matches were decided in straight sets.

Mikkelson and Sean Pease played a competitive No. 1 doubles match, but fell 8-6 to Fairleigh Dickinson’s Esteban Blanco and Philip Stephens. John Hughes and Curran were easily defeated by Gordon and Josh Girling 8-1 in No. 2 doubles. Scott Salway and Nuara played their No. 3 doubles match close, as they lost 9-8 to Priit Gross and Eddins.

“I think we played well at times and we need to continue to work on learning to finish the job,” Quinnipiac head coach Mike Quitko told QuinnipiacBobcats.com.

The Bobcats, who have now lost two in a row, won’t have much time to think about this loss. They will face visiting Hofstra tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. The Pride come into the match with a record of 3-5-1 after losing to Villanova Saturday afternoon.