Wednesday, April 19
Reese Stadium - New Haven, CT
8:00 PM
Quinnipiac University
vs
Siena
Playoff Implications At Stake for QU Women's Lacrosse on Wednesday Against Siena
4/18/2017 1:22:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse
Bobcats Looking for First MAAC Tournament Berth Since Joining the League in 2014
Quinnipiac Bobcats (3-11, 2-4 MAAC) vs.
Siena Saints (1-12, 0-5 MAAC)
Wednesday, April 19, 2017 – 8:00 PM
Reese Stadium – New Haven, CT
All-Time Series vs. Siena: Quinnipiac leads 5-3
Last Meeting: L, 14-6 (2016 – Loudonville, N.Y.)
Follow the Game
Live Stats: QuinnipiacBobcats.com
Live Video: Quinnipiac All-Access
Twitter: @QU_WLAX
If the Quinnipiac women's lacrosse team wants to dictate the odds of a postseason berth themselves, Wednesday night's home matchup against Siena will go a long way in determining a qualification for the 2017 MAAC Tournament. Facing a struggling Saints squad that enters this meeting at 0-5 in MAAC play, Quinnipiac stands a chance at improving to 3-4 in conference with a victory. In the event of a win over Siena combined with losses for Manhattan (at Monmouth) and Iona (at Fairfield) on Wednesday afternoon, Quinnipiac would clinch their first-ever MAAC Tournament berth. To do so, however, requires a win over a Siena squad that Quinnipiac has lost to three straight times since joining the MAAC in 2014.
LAST GAME
Canisius dominated play in Buffalo on Saturday, going on to defeat the Bobcats 22-4 in a game wherein the Golden Griffins rattled off a 20-1 run. Four different Bobcats scored in the loss, including Julia Corrice who scored the game's first goal which gave Quinnipiac the early 1-0 lead. Kyle Larkin made seven saves including five in the second half alone while Kiera Kelly added three ground balls to her team-leading total.
SCOUTING THE SAINTS
Siena is in the midst of a very disappointing season that sees the Saints come in with an overall mark of 1-12 while remaining winless in MAAC play at 0-5. Having lost nine straight, Siena still has something to play for as the Saints can still win-out and qualify for the MAAC Tournament. Prior to this season, Siena had amassed 17 victories between the 2015 and 2016 seasons, the most in a two-year span in the program's history. The 2017 season, however, has been a struggle throughout as their lone win came back on March 1 in a 12-10 triumph over Vermont. Siena has been outscored 207-113 this season and including an 85-46 deficit in five MAAC games. Michelle Schwartz comes in with the team-leading point total at 38 on the strength of 29 goals and nine assists. Four-time MAAC Rookie of the Week Alexis Deaken has been the top freshman in the league over the course of the season and her numbers back it up as she comes in with 34 points on 29 goals and five assists to go along with 27 ground balls and 14 caused turnovers as she leads the team in both categories. Briana Sirianni (21) and Julia Sardella (17) come in with respectable point totals but just five Saints have amassed at least 10 points in 2017. Sammy Horton has played every minute in the cage and she comes in with a 15.94 goals-against average, .400 save percentage and a mark of 1-12.
SERIES HISTORY
Siena and Quinnipiac have a storied series history that dates back to the infant years of the Quinnipiac women's lacrosse program. QU holds the all-time edge with a 5-3 record against the Saints but Siena has captured a win in all three meetings since Quinnipiac joined the MAAC in 2014. Before their first meeting as MAAC opponents, Quinnipiac and Siena last squared off in the 2003 season. These two sides met once annually in a non-conference showdown for five straight seasons starting in 1999 through 2003. Quinnipiac captured all five victories by an average margin of 9.40 per game.
MAAC TOURNAMENT SCENARIOS
Quinnipiac controls their path to a MAAC Tournament berth as two wins in their remaining two games will clinch the Bobcats' first-ever postseason bid as a member of the MAAC. A win over Siena on Wednesday, paired with losses for Manhattan (at Monmouth) and Iona (at Fairfield) in the afternoon, would clinch a MAAC Tournament bid for a Quinnipiac team that came into 2017 with four combined league wins in their first three years as a member of the conference (2014-16). A loss to Siena would open the door for the Jaspers, Gaels and Saints to leap over the Bobcats in the standings where six teams advance to the postseason out of a nine-team field. The MAAC Quarterfinal round takes place on Saturday, April 29th with the No. 3 seed hosting the No. 6 and the No. 4 vs. No. 5 seeds taking on one another with the higher seed playing host.
LARKIN'S LASER-LIKE FOCUS
Quinnipiac's road loss to Marist (4/8) saw Kyle Larkin dominate in goal as the junior posted a career high 20 saves on 30 shots-on-goal in a 10-4 defeat. Larkin's career highlight sees her become the first Quinnipiac goalkeeper to stop at least 20 shots in a single-game since Megan Matthews posted a program record 24 saves on March 30, 2003. Larkin's 20-save effort marked just the fifth time in Quinnipiac history that a goalkeeper has reached the 20-save mark.
COMEBACK CATS
After going more than two full seasons without coming back from a three-goal deficit in the second half, Quinnipiac has managed to overcome three-goal second half deficits in each of their three wins this season (10-9 over CCSU, 12-11 at Manhattan, 14-13 in overtime at Iona). Prior to the start of 2017, Quinnipiac had gone 38 games without accomplishing the feat as their last win before the start of the season when trailing by at least three in the second half came on March 29, 2014 as the Bobcats trailed Manhattan 10-6 before coming all the way back to win 12-11.
OVERCOMING IN OVERTIME
Quinnipiac's 14-13 overtime win at Iona signaled the first time the Bobcats won an overtime decision since defeating Iona 13-12 back on March 6, 2013. The Bobcats had lost their last three straight overtime games prior to defeating the Gaels on the road.
HLESCIAK HERE TO SCORE
Alex Hlesciak's 2017 season has been a revelation as the senior comes in with a team-leading 23 goals in 14 games played thus far while also adding 22 draw controls, 14 ground balls and seven caused turnovers. The 23 goals scored leads the team while setting a new career high as Hlesciak came into the season with 18 career goals through her first three seasons (40 games) as a Bobcat. Hlesciak recently tallied four goals (all in the first half) in a win over Iona, marking the third hat trick of her career (all in 2017). Since the start of MAAC play, she has compiled nine goals in six games.
LARKIN'S LEAP
Kyle Larkin's play in the cage has been stellar over the last 11 games as she has accumulated 133 saves (12.1 per game) over that span. She rattled off a career high streak of double digit saves in five straight games, while increasing her total to 16 double-digit save outings for her career. Her lowest single-game save percentage in that 11-game span is an impressive .434 while she has saved at least 50 percent of all shots-on-goal in six of the last 11 games. Larkin's goals against average stands at 12.69 in the stretch while she has posted an impressive .498 cumulative save percentage.
FLARE FOR THE DRAMATIC
Quinnipiac's leading scorer Allison Kuhn (19-8-27) has had a flare for the dramatic all season, as the sophomore has produced two game-winning goals while assisting on the game-tying goal in the Bobcats' win over Manhattan (4/1). With her team trailing 8-5 against CCSU (2/18), Kuhn scored or assisted on four of the five goals in a game-deciding 5-0 run for Quinnipiac over a 10-minute span. Facing a 10-8 deficit at Manhattan with 10 minutes remaining, Kuhn scored the game-tying goal that made it 10-10 and later assisted on Ellie Swenson's game-tying goal to make it 11-11, all prior to Ashley Bobinski's game-winner. Finally, in an overtime win at Iona (4/5), Kuhn scored with 37 seconds remaining to tie the score and send the game into the extra session before coming through scoring the game-winner in OT.
SUDDEN SURGE
Moved into more of a goal-scoring position on offense, Ellie Swenson has come through with solid showings since the start of MAAC play. In six conference games, Swenson posted two points against Monmouth and struck for her first career hat trick at Manhattan to highlight her total of eight points (six goals, two assists) through six MAAC games. The eight-point total eclipsed her entire output from her freshman season in 2016 (five points) while she has 12 points (9-3-12) thus far in the 2017 season.
LAST MINUTE MAGIC
Ashley Bobinski's game-winning free position tally with nine seconds left in a 12-11 win at Manhattan (4/1) marked the first time the Bobcats won on a goal in the final minute of play since March 28, 2013 (63 games ago). In that game, Maria Blois scored the game-winner with 10 seconds remaining as the Bobcats defeated Bryant, 16-15.
LEADING THE WAY
Quinnipiac's leading scorer in 2017 Allison Kuhn (19-8-27) has come alive since MAAC play started as she has compiled 15 points (11-4-15) in six league games. Kuhn went off at Manhattan and matched her career high with five goals while adding one assist for a game-high six points. The 2016 MAAC All-Rookie selection is on pace to shatter her freshman year total of 27 (19-8-27).
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 (44) and caused turnovers (33), Kelly leads the MAAC in caused turnovers per game (2.36) and ranks third in ground balls per game (3.14). In her career, Kelly already ranks second all-time at Quinnipiac in caused turnovers (89) while she sits fifth in ground balls (137).
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 23 goals this season, four more than sophomore Allison Kuhn in second place with 19 through 14 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.
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).
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).
Siena Saints (1-12, 0-5 MAAC)
Wednesday, April 19, 2017 – 8:00 PM
Reese Stadium – New Haven, CT
All-Time Series vs. Siena: Quinnipiac leads 5-3
Last Meeting: L, 14-6 (2016 – Loudonville, N.Y.)
Follow the Game
Live Stats: QuinnipiacBobcats.com
Live Video: Quinnipiac All-Access
Twitter: @QU_WLAX
If the Quinnipiac women's lacrosse team wants to dictate the odds of a postseason berth themselves, Wednesday night's home matchup against Siena will go a long way in determining a qualification for the 2017 MAAC Tournament. Facing a struggling Saints squad that enters this meeting at 0-5 in MAAC play, Quinnipiac stands a chance at improving to 3-4 in conference with a victory. In the event of a win over Siena combined with losses for Manhattan (at Monmouth) and Iona (at Fairfield) on Wednesday afternoon, Quinnipiac would clinch their first-ever MAAC Tournament berth. To do so, however, requires a win over a Siena squad that Quinnipiac has lost to three straight times since joining the MAAC in 2014.
LAST GAME
Canisius dominated play in Buffalo on Saturday, going on to defeat the Bobcats 22-4 in a game wherein the Golden Griffins rattled off a 20-1 run. Four different Bobcats scored in the loss, including Julia Corrice who scored the game's first goal which gave Quinnipiac the early 1-0 lead. Kyle Larkin made seven saves including five in the second half alone while Kiera Kelly added three ground balls to her team-leading total.
SCOUTING THE SAINTS
Siena is in the midst of a very disappointing season that sees the Saints come in with an overall mark of 1-12 while remaining winless in MAAC play at 0-5. Having lost nine straight, Siena still has something to play for as the Saints can still win-out and qualify for the MAAC Tournament. Prior to this season, Siena had amassed 17 victories between the 2015 and 2016 seasons, the most in a two-year span in the program's history. The 2017 season, however, has been a struggle throughout as their lone win came back on March 1 in a 12-10 triumph over Vermont. Siena has been outscored 207-113 this season and including an 85-46 deficit in five MAAC games. Michelle Schwartz comes in with the team-leading point total at 38 on the strength of 29 goals and nine assists. Four-time MAAC Rookie of the Week Alexis Deaken has been the top freshman in the league over the course of the season and her numbers back it up as she comes in with 34 points on 29 goals and five assists to go along with 27 ground balls and 14 caused turnovers as she leads the team in both categories. Briana Sirianni (21) and Julia Sardella (17) come in with respectable point totals but just five Saints have amassed at least 10 points in 2017. Sammy Horton has played every minute in the cage and she comes in with a 15.94 goals-against average, .400 save percentage and a mark of 1-12.
SERIES HISTORY
Siena and Quinnipiac have a storied series history that dates back to the infant years of the Quinnipiac women's lacrosse program. QU holds the all-time edge with a 5-3 record against the Saints but Siena has captured a win in all three meetings since Quinnipiac joined the MAAC in 2014. Before their first meeting as MAAC opponents, Quinnipiac and Siena last squared off in the 2003 season. These two sides met once annually in a non-conference showdown for five straight seasons starting in 1999 through 2003. Quinnipiac captured all five victories by an average margin of 9.40 per game.
MAAC TOURNAMENT SCENARIOS
Quinnipiac controls their path to a MAAC Tournament berth as two wins in their remaining two games will clinch the Bobcats' first-ever postseason bid as a member of the MAAC. A win over Siena on Wednesday, paired with losses for Manhattan (at Monmouth) and Iona (at Fairfield) in the afternoon, would clinch a MAAC Tournament bid for a Quinnipiac team that came into 2017 with four combined league wins in their first three years as a member of the conference (2014-16). A loss to Siena would open the door for the Jaspers, Gaels and Saints to leap over the Bobcats in the standings where six teams advance to the postseason out of a nine-team field. The MAAC Quarterfinal round takes place on Saturday, April 29th with the No. 3 seed hosting the No. 6 and the No. 4 vs. No. 5 seeds taking on one another with the higher seed playing host.
LARKIN'S LASER-LIKE FOCUS
Quinnipiac's road loss to Marist (4/8) saw Kyle Larkin dominate in goal as the junior posted a career high 20 saves on 30 shots-on-goal in a 10-4 defeat. Larkin's career highlight sees her become the first Quinnipiac goalkeeper to stop at least 20 shots in a single-game since Megan Matthews posted a program record 24 saves on March 30, 2003. Larkin's 20-save effort marked just the fifth time in Quinnipiac history that a goalkeeper has reached the 20-save mark.
COMEBACK CATS
After going more than two full seasons without coming back from a three-goal deficit in the second half, Quinnipiac has managed to overcome three-goal second half deficits in each of their three wins this season (10-9 over CCSU, 12-11 at Manhattan, 14-13 in overtime at Iona). Prior to the start of 2017, Quinnipiac had gone 38 games without accomplishing the feat as their last win before the start of the season when trailing by at least three in the second half came on March 29, 2014 as the Bobcats trailed Manhattan 10-6 before coming all the way back to win 12-11.
OVERCOMING IN OVERTIME
Quinnipiac's 14-13 overtime win at Iona signaled the first time the Bobcats won an overtime decision since defeating Iona 13-12 back on March 6, 2013. The Bobcats had lost their last three straight overtime games prior to defeating the Gaels on the road.
HLESCIAK HERE TO SCORE
Alex Hlesciak's 2017 season has been a revelation as the senior comes in with a team-leading 23 goals in 14 games played thus far while also adding 22 draw controls, 14 ground balls and seven caused turnovers. The 23 goals scored leads the team while setting a new career high as Hlesciak came into the season with 18 career goals through her first three seasons (40 games) as a Bobcat. Hlesciak recently tallied four goals (all in the first half) in a win over Iona, marking the third hat trick of her career (all in 2017). Since the start of MAAC play, she has compiled nine goals in six games.
LARKIN'S LEAP
Kyle Larkin's play in the cage has been stellar over the last 11 games as she has accumulated 133 saves (12.1 per game) over that span. She rattled off a career high streak of double digit saves in five straight games, while increasing her total to 16 double-digit save outings for her career. Her lowest single-game save percentage in that 11-game span is an impressive .434 while she has saved at least 50 percent of all shots-on-goal in six of the last 11 games. Larkin's goals against average stands at 12.69 in the stretch while she has posted an impressive .498 cumulative save percentage.
FLARE FOR THE DRAMATIC
Quinnipiac's leading scorer Allison Kuhn (19-8-27) has had a flare for the dramatic all season, as the sophomore has produced two game-winning goals while assisting on the game-tying goal in the Bobcats' win over Manhattan (4/1). With her team trailing 8-5 against CCSU (2/18), Kuhn scored or assisted on four of the five goals in a game-deciding 5-0 run for Quinnipiac over a 10-minute span. Facing a 10-8 deficit at Manhattan with 10 minutes remaining, Kuhn scored the game-tying goal that made it 10-10 and later assisted on Ellie Swenson's game-tying goal to make it 11-11, all prior to Ashley Bobinski's game-winner. Finally, in an overtime win at Iona (4/5), Kuhn scored with 37 seconds remaining to tie the score and send the game into the extra session before coming through scoring the game-winner in OT.
SUDDEN SURGE
Moved into more of a goal-scoring position on offense, Ellie Swenson has come through with solid showings since the start of MAAC play. In six conference games, Swenson posted two points against Monmouth and struck for her first career hat trick at Manhattan to highlight her total of eight points (six goals, two assists) through six MAAC games. The eight-point total eclipsed her entire output from her freshman season in 2016 (five points) while she has 12 points (9-3-12) thus far in the 2017 season.
LAST MINUTE MAGIC
Ashley Bobinski's game-winning free position tally with nine seconds left in a 12-11 win at Manhattan (4/1) marked the first time the Bobcats won on a goal in the final minute of play since March 28, 2013 (63 games ago). In that game, Maria Blois scored the game-winner with 10 seconds remaining as the Bobcats defeated Bryant, 16-15.
LEADING THE WAY
Quinnipiac's leading scorer in 2017 Allison Kuhn (19-8-27) has come alive since MAAC play started as she has compiled 15 points (11-4-15) in six league games. Kuhn went off at Manhattan and matched her career high with five goals while adding one assist for a game-high six points. The 2016 MAAC All-Rookie selection is on pace to shatter her freshman year total of 27 (19-8-27).
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 (44) and caused turnovers (33), Kelly leads the MAAC in caused turnovers per game (2.36) and ranks third in ground balls per game (3.14). In her career, Kelly already ranks second all-time at Quinnipiac in caused turnovers (89) while she sits fifth in ground balls (137).
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 23 goals this season, four more than sophomore Allison Kuhn in second place with 19 through 14 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.
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).
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
ATTACK
/ Women's Lacrosse
DEFENSE
/ Women's Lacrosse
GOALKEEPER
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