Saturday, April 1
Gaelic Park - Riverdale, NY
10:00 AM
Quinnipiac University
at
Manhattan
QU Women's Lacrosse Travels to Manhattan for Saturday Morning MAAC Tilt
3/31/2017 11:46:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
Bobcats Winners of Four Straight Against Manhattan
Quinnipiac Bobcats (1-8, 0-1 MAAC) at
Manhattan Jaspers (3-6, 0-1 MAAC)
Saturday, April 1, 2017 – 11:00 AM
Gaelic Park – Riverdale, NY
All-Time Series vs. Manhattan: Quinnipiac leads 6-1
Last Meeting: W, 12-8 (2016 – Hamden, Conn.)
Follow the Game
Live Stats: GoJaspers.com
Live Video: Jasper Sports Network
Twitter: @QU_WLAX
The Quinnipiac women's lacrosse team heads back on the road, continuing a grueling seven of eight games played away from home on Saturday morning at Manhattan. After giving traditional conference power Monmouth a great effort at home last Saturday, Quinnipiac looks to even their MAAC record against a Jasper team whom the Bobcats defeated 12-8 last season for their lone conference victory in 2016.
LAST GAME
The Quinnipiac women's lacrosse team came all the way back from a 5-1 first-half deficit to take an 8-7 lead with 19:15 to play, but Monmouth finished the game on a 5-0 run to take a 12-8 win over the Bobcats in the MAAC opener for both teams. After trailing 6-3 at the break, Quinnipiac used a 4-0 run in the second half to take an 8-7 lead. Monmouth answered back quickly with a transition goal from Katie Ryan with 17:20 to go and the score remained deadlocked at 8-8 for almost 10 minutes, as both teams had several quality chances to take the lead back. Finally, the Hawks broke through with 8:40 left as Olivia Higson scored her third of the game. Monmouth won the ensuing draw and scored again as Alexa Smith found the net with 8:13 to go, and after Quinnipiac was issued a yellow card, Alex Stambaugh stretched the lead to 11-8 with 6:33 left. Kyle Larkin was solid in net with 12 saves while the Bobcats and Hawks tied with 29 shot attempts for the game. Allison Kuhn pumped in three points while Alex Hlesciak scored twice for the Bobcats while Kiera Kelly led the defensive unit with four caused turnovers and four ground balls.
SCOUTING THE JASPERS
Manhattan comes into the weekend with a 3-6 overall record but have won three of their last five games including a Wednesday non-conference win at Sacred Heart, 10-5. Winners of four games in every single-season since 2011, Manhattan is off to an encouraging start through nine games with three victories. The Jaspers are 0-1 in the MAAC with a conference-opening loss at national power Canisius, 15-5, but now enter a crucial stretch where Manhattan has three of their next four games coming at home in conference play. Molly Fitzpatrick leads Manhattan in points with 28 on 21 goals and seven assists, while Darby Nolan is a solid scoring option with 21 points on 15 goals and six assists this season. The Jaspers have great balance, as Sarah Lang (20), Caitlin Murphy (17), Kara Hodapp (17), Emily Sandford (12) and Emily Englert (10) all have at least 10 points on the season. Nikki Prestiano has started all nine games in goal and has an 11.29 goals-against average and an impressive .473 save percentage. Hailey Siemek leads the defensive unit with 13 caused turnovers and 14 ground balls.
SERIES HISTORY
With the move to the MAAC, Quinnipiac reinvigorated what was an annual rivalry back in the infant years of the program. These two sides have met seven times, with Quinnipiac holding a 6-1 all-time record, but prior to the 2014 season the Jaspers and Bobcats hadn't met on a consistent basis since 1999-2001. The first meeting fell all the way back on April 17, 1999 where Quinnipiac dispatched the Jaspers, 14-13, in overtime. The lone Manhattan win came on March 21, 2000 with a 7-5 victory, since then Quinnipiac has won four straight including a 12-8 decision last year from Hamden.
DEFENSIVE DYNAMO
One season after leading the MAAC in both caused turnovers and ground balls per game, junior Preseason All-MAAC First Teamer Kiera Kelly is back at it again with her strong one-on-one defensive play. Currently leading the team in ground balls (29) and caused turnovers (20), Kelly leads the MAAC in caused turnovers per game (2.22) by a wide margin and ranks second in ground balls per game (3.22) while she sits first among field players in that category. In her career, Kelly already ranks fourth all-time at Quinnipiac in caused turnovers (76) while she sits sixth in ground balls (122).
SENIOR MOMENT
Alex Hlesciak played the game of her life against Fresno State (3/16) as the senior racked up a career high five goals in a 9-8 loss to the Bulldogs. In 45 games prior to the match at Fresno State, Hlesciak tallied a single-game high of two goals on six different occasions. She exploded for five goals, more than double her previous career-best, while scoring four straight goals for the Bobcats. Hlesciak added a second career hat trick at UMass Lowell (3/22) and now leads the Bobcats with 16 goals this season, four more than freshman Ashley Bobinski in second place with 12 through the first nine games.
SHUTTING THE DOOR
Junior goalkeeper Kyle Larkin has played some of the best lacrosse of her career in the last week as she racked up a career high 16 saves in a loss to UC Davis (3/12) and then passed that with 19 saves in a loss to Hofstra (3/18). Larkin posted 11 of her 16 saves in the first half alone against UC Davis, surpassing her previous career high of 14 from a road game at Siena last season, and then had 11 of her 19 saves against Hofstra in the second half.
LARKIN'S LEAP
Kyle Larkin's play in the cage has been stellar over the last six games as she has accumulated 72 saves (12.0 per game) over that span, while increasing her total to 12 double-digit save outings for her career. Her lowest single-game save percentage in that six-game span is an impressive .479 while she has saved at least 50 percent of all shots-on-goal in four of the last six games. Larkin's goals against average stands at 11.85 in the six-game stretch while she has posted a staggering .500 save percentage.
NEW SEASON…NEW TEAM
Trailing by three in the second half, Quinnipiac answered with five straight goals to catapult the Bobcats out front and ultimately to a season-opening 10-9 victory over CCSU (2/18). A resounding come-from-behind victory to open the career of first-year head coach Tanya Kotowicz at Quinnipiac, the victory stands as the first win in a season opener for the Bobcats since defeating UConn, 11-10, all the way back in the 2009 season (seven straight season-opening losses prior to tonight's win). Incredibly, Quinnipiac's win marks just the fourth victory in a season opener in the 19 seasons since joining the NCAA Div. I ranks (1999).
COMEBACK CATS
The thunderous three-goal second half comeback win over CCSU (2/18) marked the first time Quinnipiac overcame a three-goal deficit to win since falling behind 3-0 against Iona to come back and win 15-9 on April 9, 2014 (36 games ago). The last time Quinnipiac overcame a three-goal second half deficit came against Manhattan on March 29, 2014 (38 games ago) as the Bobcats trailed 10-6 before coming all the way back to win 12-11.
INSTANT IMPACT
Freshman Ashley Bobinski's first career game certainly stands out as one to remember as she scored four goals on four shots to make her the highest-scoring rookie in her debut as a Bobcat in program history. The last rookie to post a hat trick in her debut with Quinnipiac came back in 2012 as Kyra Ochwat tallied three goals against UConn. Bobinski scored three times, securing her hat trick after 17 minutes of play, which she added one more in the second half to give her a team-leading four tallies while igniting the game-deciding 5-0 second half run. Bobinski also had a two-goal, one-assist performance to have a hand in three of Quinnipiac's four goals in a loss at Hofstra (3/18).
Manhattan Jaspers (3-6, 0-1 MAAC)
Saturday, April 1, 2017 – 11:00 AM
Gaelic Park – Riverdale, NY
All-Time Series vs. Manhattan: Quinnipiac leads 6-1
Last Meeting: W, 12-8 (2016 – Hamden, Conn.)
Follow the Game
Live Stats: GoJaspers.com
Live Video: Jasper Sports Network
Twitter: @QU_WLAX
The Quinnipiac women's lacrosse team heads back on the road, continuing a grueling seven of eight games played away from home on Saturday morning at Manhattan. After giving traditional conference power Monmouth a great effort at home last Saturday, Quinnipiac looks to even their MAAC record against a Jasper team whom the Bobcats defeated 12-8 last season for their lone conference victory in 2016.
LAST GAME
The Quinnipiac women's lacrosse team came all the way back from a 5-1 first-half deficit to take an 8-7 lead with 19:15 to play, but Monmouth finished the game on a 5-0 run to take a 12-8 win over the Bobcats in the MAAC opener for both teams. After trailing 6-3 at the break, Quinnipiac used a 4-0 run in the second half to take an 8-7 lead. Monmouth answered back quickly with a transition goal from Katie Ryan with 17:20 to go and the score remained deadlocked at 8-8 for almost 10 minutes, as both teams had several quality chances to take the lead back. Finally, the Hawks broke through with 8:40 left as Olivia Higson scored her third of the game. Monmouth won the ensuing draw and scored again as Alexa Smith found the net with 8:13 to go, and after Quinnipiac was issued a yellow card, Alex Stambaugh stretched the lead to 11-8 with 6:33 left. Kyle Larkin was solid in net with 12 saves while the Bobcats and Hawks tied with 29 shot attempts for the game. Allison Kuhn pumped in three points while Alex Hlesciak scored twice for the Bobcats while Kiera Kelly led the defensive unit with four caused turnovers and four ground balls.
SCOUTING THE JASPERS
Manhattan comes into the weekend with a 3-6 overall record but have won three of their last five games including a Wednesday non-conference win at Sacred Heart, 10-5. Winners of four games in every single-season since 2011, Manhattan is off to an encouraging start through nine games with three victories. The Jaspers are 0-1 in the MAAC with a conference-opening loss at national power Canisius, 15-5, but now enter a crucial stretch where Manhattan has three of their next four games coming at home in conference play. Molly Fitzpatrick leads Manhattan in points with 28 on 21 goals and seven assists, while Darby Nolan is a solid scoring option with 21 points on 15 goals and six assists this season. The Jaspers have great balance, as Sarah Lang (20), Caitlin Murphy (17), Kara Hodapp (17), Emily Sandford (12) and Emily Englert (10) all have at least 10 points on the season. Nikki Prestiano has started all nine games in goal and has an 11.29 goals-against average and an impressive .473 save percentage. Hailey Siemek leads the defensive unit with 13 caused turnovers and 14 ground balls.
SERIES HISTORY
With the move to the MAAC, Quinnipiac reinvigorated what was an annual rivalry back in the infant years of the program. These two sides have met seven times, with Quinnipiac holding a 6-1 all-time record, but prior to the 2014 season the Jaspers and Bobcats hadn't met on a consistent basis since 1999-2001. The first meeting fell all the way back on April 17, 1999 where Quinnipiac dispatched the Jaspers, 14-13, in overtime. The lone Manhattan win came on March 21, 2000 with a 7-5 victory, since then Quinnipiac has won four straight including a 12-8 decision last year from Hamden.
DEFENSIVE DYNAMO
One season after leading the MAAC in both caused turnovers and ground balls per game, junior Preseason All-MAAC First Teamer Kiera Kelly is back at it again with her strong one-on-one defensive play. Currently leading the team in ground balls (29) and caused turnovers (20), Kelly leads the MAAC in caused turnovers per game (2.22) by a wide margin and ranks second in ground balls per game (3.22) while she sits first among field players in that category. In her career, Kelly already ranks fourth all-time at Quinnipiac in caused turnovers (76) while she sits sixth in ground balls (122).
SENIOR MOMENT
Alex Hlesciak played the game of her life against Fresno State (3/16) as the senior racked up a career high five goals in a 9-8 loss to the Bulldogs. In 45 games prior to the match at Fresno State, Hlesciak tallied a single-game high of two goals on six different occasions. She exploded for five goals, more than double her previous career-best, while scoring four straight goals for the Bobcats. Hlesciak added a second career hat trick at UMass Lowell (3/22) and now leads the Bobcats with 16 goals this season, four more than freshman Ashley Bobinski in second place with 12 through the first nine games.
SHUTTING THE DOOR
Junior goalkeeper Kyle Larkin has played some of the best lacrosse of her career in the last week as she racked up a career high 16 saves in a loss to UC Davis (3/12) and then passed that with 19 saves in a loss to Hofstra (3/18). Larkin posted 11 of her 16 saves in the first half alone against UC Davis, surpassing her previous career high of 14 from a road game at Siena last season, and then had 11 of her 19 saves against Hofstra in the second half.
LARKIN'S LEAP
Kyle Larkin's play in the cage has been stellar over the last six games as she has accumulated 72 saves (12.0 per game) over that span, while increasing her total to 12 double-digit save outings for her career. Her lowest single-game save percentage in that six-game span is an impressive .479 while she has saved at least 50 percent of all shots-on-goal in four of the last six games. Larkin's goals against average stands at 11.85 in the six-game stretch while she has posted a staggering .500 save percentage.
NEW SEASON…NEW TEAM
Trailing by three in the second half, Quinnipiac answered with five straight goals to catapult the Bobcats out front and ultimately to a season-opening 10-9 victory over CCSU (2/18). A resounding come-from-behind victory to open the career of first-year head coach Tanya Kotowicz at Quinnipiac, the victory stands as the first win in a season opener for the Bobcats since defeating UConn, 11-10, all the way back in the 2009 season (seven straight season-opening losses prior to tonight's win). Incredibly, Quinnipiac's win marks just the fourth victory in a season opener in the 19 seasons since joining the NCAA Div. I ranks (1999).
COMEBACK CATS
The thunderous three-goal second half comeback win over CCSU (2/18) marked the first time Quinnipiac overcame a three-goal deficit to win since falling behind 3-0 against Iona to come back and win 15-9 on April 9, 2014 (36 games ago). The last time Quinnipiac overcame a three-goal second half deficit came against Manhattan on March 29, 2014 (38 games ago) as the Bobcats trailed 10-6 before coming all the way back to win 12-11.
INSTANT IMPACT
Freshman Ashley Bobinski's first career game certainly stands out as one to remember as she scored four goals on four shots to make her the highest-scoring rookie in her debut as a Bobcat in program history. The last rookie to post a hat trick in her debut with Quinnipiac came back in 2012 as Kyra Ochwat tallied three goals against UConn. Bobinski scored three times, securing her hat trick after 17 minutes of play, which she added one more in the second half to give her a team-leading four tallies while igniting the game-deciding 5-0 second half run. Bobinski also had a two-goal, one-assist performance to have a hand in three of Quinnipiac's four goals in a loss at Hofstra (3/18).
Players Mentioned
MIDFIELD
/ Women's Lacrosse
DEFENSE
/ Women's Lacrosse
MIDFIELD
/ Women's Lacrosse
GOALKEEPER
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