This past Sunday was a special day for the Quinnipiac Bobcats. It was Senior Day, where the Bobcats recognized their seniors Brittany Riggio, Megan Sciascia and Lauren Kuchmak as well as senior student athletic trainer Kim Leverone. Coming off a 3-2 loss to Lock Haven this past Friday, the Bobcats were not going to let anything stop them at their annual Senior Day and their last home game of the regular season. The Bobcats scored four goals in a fifteen minute span en route to a 5-0 victory over the Siena Saints.
The Bobcats came out strong, gaining initial possession of the ball. After some back and forth action, the Bobcats drove the ball into Saints territory. Eleven minutes in, senior midfielder Megan Sciascia passed the ball towards the goal to freshman forward Kaitlyn Notarianni, who moved around the goalie and shot the ball into the bottom right corner of the goal.
Four minutes and one shot later, Notarianni was standing by the left post and received a pass from sophomore midfielder Megan McCreedy and put the ball away with a shot to the bottom right corner of the goal. The goals were the first and second of her career.
“It was awesome. It was the first goal of my career. I was so excited,” Notarianni said. “I was on an emotional high, and just like that, I had my second goal.”
Ten more minutes went by before the Bobcats struck again. Senior midfielder Lauren Hartnett picked up a loose ball from in front of the goal and shot it to the left of the goalie. A mere 73 seconds later, Sciascia drove the ball and passed it to Hartnett, who shot the ball into the lower right side of the goal to score her second of the game.
“It was a good team effort,” Hartnett said. “Whenever we score, we don’t say that we scored. The Bobcats scored. We were just in the right place at the right time, and that’s what happened twice [to me] today.”
At the end of one half or play, the Bobcats were up by a score of 4-0.
“The key to the game is how we come out on the first few plays,” Coach Cheryl Torino said. “The first five or ten minutes really set the tempo. A lot of coaches say that, but it is especially true for us, as seen today.”
The second half was full of Bobcat action, with the Bobcats outshooting the Saints, 12-3. With about 18 minutes left in the game Coach Torino put sophomore goalie Amanda DeLouise in for senior goalie Jenna Grossman, who received a standing ovation from the crowd of almost 200 students, parents, and siblings.
With three and a half minutes left in the game, the Bobcats won their eleventh corner of the game. Hartnett passed the ball to junior forward Cassie Adams. From about five yards away from the goal, Adams fired a shot into the lower right corner and scored the second goal of her career. The goal sealed the deal for the Bobcats, making the score 5-0, which is how it would end.
The win keeps the Bobcats in contention for the NEC Tournament, which begins on November 7. They are currently tied in fourth place with the Monmouth Hawks with a 2-2 conference record.
The Bobcats have three more conference games left on the schedule, all of which are on the road. In order to make the NEC Tournament, the Bobcats must match or do better than the Hawks in the remaining three games.
“Anyone can win the conference games. Skill is out of the equation. It is about the emotion and hustle that is put on the field. It’s the untouchable intangibles that are the key to success,” Coach Torino said.
The Bobcats travel to Loretto, Pa. this Friday to take on the St. Francis Red Flash.
