Top Bobcat Moments 2011-2012

Posted on May 02, 2012 by The QU Chronicle

: The Quinnipiac women’s soccer team was led by senior Furtuna Velaj, who knotched 14 points off of six goals and two assists during the season. Her six goals ranked seventh in the conference. The Bobcats’ best win of the season came at Monmouth on Oct. 21, 2011, when they defeated the third-best team in the conference 2-1. Shauna Edwards got Quinnipiac on the board first but the Hawks quickly tied it up in the 25th minute with a goal off of a free kick. Chelsea Smith scored what would eventually be the game-winning goal off an assist from Aine McKeever in the 35th minute. – Joe Addonizio

: The Bobcats took to the court with a freshmen-stacked fold. Michelle Dassa and Jacqueline Raynor led the way for the first-year players, securing a 22-8 doubles record over the course of the season. Additionally, Ariana Launie netted 13 individual wins, leading all freshmen in that category. The rest of the squad was not to be outdone, however, as veteran leadership proved vital on the scoreboard. The team of juniors Rachel Cantor and Sarah Viebrock dropped only four games on the season while pocketing 15 wins, and sophomore Lavinia Cristescu finished 5-1 in conference play. Ultimately, the team would finish 10-12 overall, alongside 2-2 in NEC play. They would go on to lose the NEC Championship match against Fairleigh Dickinson 4-2. – Jon Alba

: Senior walk-on William Cavallo (left) scored the game-winning goal against Loyola (Md.) in the 53rd minute to seal a 1-0 victory for Quinnipiac on Sept. 24, 2011. – Giovanni Mio

: Individual accolades were a recurring theme in a very successful season for the women’s lacrosse team. Senior Marissa Caroleo netted her 126th career goal, becoming the Quinnipiac’s all-time leading goal scorer. On the record-breaking play, Sarah Allen picked up the assist, which marked her 100th career point. Allen also set the single-season record for assists after just 10 games and led the country in assist. Caroleo also took home her second-straight NEC Player of the Year award, the first two-time winner in the history of the women’s lacrosse program. On the other side of the ball, senior Devon Gibney was named NEC Defensive Player of the Year. Also bringing home hardware was freshman Kyra Ochwat, who won NEC Rookie of the Year honors. Caroleo, Gibney, Allen, and senior defender Kim Davis were all selected to the First Team All-NEC. – Dan Brennan

: Senior captain Megan McCreedy broke the program’s single-season and career assist record on Oct. 23, 2011 against Bryant. The native of South Africa recorded her 13th assist of the year and 25th of her career to help defeat Bryant 2-0. McCreedy finished her career at Quinnipiac with 26 assists. – Ben Dias

: Junior Felicia Barron led the nation in steals with 4.1 a game and tied the Division I single game record with 12 steals against Bryant on Dec. 3, 2011 to help the Bobcats win their Northeast Conference opener 67- 56. – Kerry Healy

: The top highlight this season is when junior midfield captain Jay Binkowski scored his third goal of the game vs. Binghamton with less than 40 seconds remaining in the game to give the Bobcats a 12-11 victory. The goal clinched the Bobcats their first win of the season after losing six consecutive nonconference games. The win propelled the Bobcats to a three-game win streak. – Ben Dias

: By defeating the Brown Bears in a three-game-series, two games to one in the first round of the ECAC Hockey Tournament, Quinnipiac is the only team to win a playoff series each year in the conference since joining the ECAC in the 2005-06 season. Sophomores Connor and Kellen Jones were awarded team MVP honors at the end of the year, while freshman Matthew Peca was named the team’s Rookie of the Year. Connor finished with 41 points off of 13 goals and 28 assists while Kellen had 36 points on 14 goals and 22 assists. Peca joined the twins line late in the season and added 39 points off of eight goals and 31 assists. – Giovanni Mio

: After coaching 13-straight games with 499 career wins, Dan “Skip” Gooley received a Gatorade bath from his players after winning game No. 500 against Mount St. Mary’s, 17-3 on Friday April 13. – Dan Brennan

: Senior guard James Johnson gave the Bobcat faithful a memorable Senior Say by recording 28 points and four assists including 10 points in the final 2:16 of regulation to defeat rival Robert Morris, 73-69. Johnson was 2 for 2 from 3-point range in the final minutes and also knocked down four free throws. – Jon Alba

: The softball team tied an NCAA record by hitting back-to-back-to-back-to-back home runs in the first inning against Sacred Heart to cap off an eight-run inning. They would go on to defeat the Pioneers 12-7. The Bobcats batted around the order as Alex Alba started the derby off with a 3-run shot to left field. Mina Duffy, Katie Alfiere and Nikki Barba followed with three-straight solo shots. – Bryan Lipiner

: Sophomore Olivia Grattan shined her way to the spotlight with 162 kills, while freshman Brittanie Robinson added 143 of her own. Alongside her, fellow standout Tierra Allen, daughter of Celtics guard Ray Allen, proved to be a valuable asset to the team. Allen pursued through injury and managed to contribute 131 kills on the season. – Jon Alba

: The Quinnipiac women’s rugby team played in its inauragal season this year and hosted its first game against Marist on Oct. 3, 2011. The team would make history again later in the season when it faced Eastern Illinois in the first ever NCAA Division I women’s rugby match. – Bryan Lipiner

: Women’s hockey sophomore Kelly Babstock became the program’s all-time leader in goals and points this season. Babstock broke the points record on Nov. 18, 2011 against Colgate as she picked up four points to help the Bobcats win 6-2. On Feb. 17, Babstock picked up two goals to set the goals record with her 44th score in just her 68th game. Babstock has 48 goals in two seasons for the Bobcats to go along with 99 career points. – Bryan Lipiner

: The Bobcats fell in their closest match of the season to Azusa Pacific on Senior Night, April 2. The Bobcats lost their first half by a score of .94, after losing both the compulsories and acro totals, but winning the pyramid event. In the second half, Quinnipiac won both the toss and tumbling rounds, by .45 and .125, respectively. Yet, Azusa Pacific came back to take the team event, 104.920 to 104.700. Graduate student Erin Trotman and senior Danielle Pilloise were honored on the evening. The Bobcats went winless on the season and lost to Azusa Pacific in the NCATA quarterfinals by 2.165 points. – Bryan Lipiner

: The Quinnipiac men’s tennis team was highlighted by senior James Kwei who finished his career with 127 career wins. – Joe Addonizio

: The women headed back outside in the Spring and junior Becca White continue to be dominant. White highlighted the season so far by winning the 5K at the Fred Hardy invitational with a time of 17:24.45. The women will compete at the Northeast Conference Championships on Saturday and look to improve on their seventh place finish from last season. – Joe Addonizio

: This spring in a match at Rhode Island Country Club in Barrington, R.I. for the Brown Invitational, the Bobcats may have had their brightest moment yet as one golfer would put herself in the program’s record books. On a day that saw the Quinnipiac women’s golf team shed 27 strokes from 380-353 for a two-day total of 733 at the Brown University Invitational. Junior Kayla Ketcheson broke the program’s single-round record with a 79. Ketcheson held the Bobcats’ previous all-time best mark with an 80 at the Rutgers’ Invitational on Oct. 12, 2011. Her two-day total of 167 also ties the Quinnipiac tournament record, which she also set at the ECAC Championships on Oct. 3-4, 2011. – Ben Dias

: The men’s cross country team finished sixth out of 12 teams at the Northeast Conference Championship in Holmdel, N.J. in late October. The Bobcats finished the day with a total of 171 points, while Central Connecticut State University won with 54 points. Freshman Spencer Mannion led Quinnipiac by placing 27th overall in 27:50:90. – Giovanni Mio

: The Quinnipiac women’s indoor track team finished seventh in the Northeast Conference Championship. Becca White finished in first place in the 5K with a time of 17:35:50. Quinnipiac also qualified for the New England Championships. For the final meet of the season, Morgan Roche represented the Bobcats in the ECAC championship where she competed in the 3,000 meter run with a time of 9:57:04. – Kerry Healy

: The Quinnipiac women’s cross country team won its seventh consecutive Northeast Conference Championship in October. The Bobcats placed first out of 12 teams with 44 points. The top three runners for Quinnipiac crossed the line within seconds of each other as Morgan Roche finished fifth overall, followed by teammate Andrea Szarkowicz in sixth, and Brianna Faust in seventh place. The Bobcats qualified for the NCAA Division I Northeast Regionals, where they finished 20th out of 36 teams. – Kerry Healy

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