Welcome to “Bobcat Report,” the Chronicle’s weekly column that breaks down all the recent games, facts and lesser-known stories surrounding Quinnipiac athletics this year.
Dirty Rugby Jerseys
After a close win against Sacred Heart on Saturday, the most obvious thing about the Quinnipiac rugby team was how dirty their uniforms were.
“I don’t think anybody was getting away that was out on that field for three seconds for their jersey to not be dirty,” head coach Becky Carlson said. “If you judge it by dirty, everybody wins.”
Those sloppy conditions, which led to a number of turnovers from both sides, is just how rugby is supposed to be played.
“From the standpoint of taking care of the ball,” Carlson said. “Whether that was because the ball’s incredibly muddy or because we weren’t sure-footed on the terrain, we need to clean this up. This is what rugby is about.”
With a muddy ground and now-brown uniforms, the Bobcats are sitting pretty at .500 and in the thick of the NIRA postseason race heading into October.
Welcome to Hamden, Jarvis
Ahead of the women’s ice hockey season, the Bobcats got in a bunch of transfers to bolster their offense. One of those transfers was Ohio State winger Emerson Jarvis.
In just her second game as a Bobcat, Jarvis found the back of the net in a 5-1 win over the Maine Black Bears.
“(It) feels amazing,” Jarvis said. “It’s such a supportive group of girls, and I feel so grateful to be here and just be surrounded by this team every day.”
After her first weekend with Quinnipiac, the Alberta, Canada native has registered four shots on net, the aforementioned goal and has made an impression on her head coach.
“I think when you see new players come in and be able to contribute right away, it’s because the older players are making them comfortable to be here,” Quinnipiac head coach Cass Turner said. “I think that’s exactly it. It was great to see that shot from Emerson.”
Volleyball’s Historic Start
For just the first time since 2016, the Quinnipiac volleyball team is 5-0 to start conference play.
The defending MAAC champions haven’t played a home match since Sept. 17, but have rattled off three-straight wins on the team’s New York road trip. In wins against Marist, Siena and Iona, the Bobcats have only faltered in four sets and are the front runners to repeat as conference winners.
“When you’re the hunted and you’ve been at the top, people want what you want,” head coach Kyle Robinson said after the Bobcats’ 3-1 win over Iona Saturday. “They want to be us in some form or fashion so we’ve got to play more consistently and better than we showed tonight.”
Quinnipiac is set to face off against Manhattan today at 3 p.m. before returning to Connecticut for an in-state rivalry match against Fairfield on Oct. 6.
Game of the Week: Men’s Ice Hockey vs Boston College (Saturday, Oct. 7 at 7 p.m.)
This is the game to go to, the hot ticket item on campus. Doors open at 5 p.m. for the season opener for the defending national title winning Bobcats. The game between two heavyweight programs may be masked by the 2023 championship banner that will be dropped pregame.
