Quinnipiac University
5-6-1, 1-0
Iona
2-9, 0-1
Bobcats Begin MAAC Play With Win Over Iona
3/7/2025 6:38:00 PM | Baseball
SCORE
Quinnipiac 15, Iona 8
RECORDS
Quinnipiac (5-6-1, 1-0 MAAC) | Iona (2-9, 0-1 MAAC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Bobcats got a 1-2-3 top of the first to kick off the game and immediately got to work on the offensive side of the ball. Sebastian Mueller brought home Sean McCulloch with the game's first run on a one-out single. Christian Smith followed up with a two-run home run to right field to make it a 3-0 lead for the Bobcats.
Iona got one run back in the second inning on a ground out to first. Kyle Garbowski got the run right back for the Bobcats as he brought home CJ Willis with a sacrifice fly in the bottom half of the inning.
The Gaels would go on to score five-unanswered runs to take a 6-4 lead into the bottom half of the sixth inning. Iona struck for two runs in the third inning, before scoring one in the fifth inning, which tied the game. Iona's two runs in the sixth inning gave themselves a two-run lead. Sebastian Mueller brought home two runs in the sixth as he reached on a fielding error, allowing McCulloch and Garbowski to score.
The Bobcats scored three in the seventh to regain the lead. CJ Willis singled through the right side to score Johnny Knox and put Quinnipiac in front. With a runner on first and third, a fake steal drew a threw down to second, allowing James Marino to scamper home from third. A double steal would force in another run as CJ Willis scored on a throwing error.
Iona made it a one-run game in their half of the eighth inning, scoring on a wild pitch and on a fielder's choice. With the Bobcats looking for insurance runs in the eighth, that is exactly what they got. Christian Smith scored as CJ Willis was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Cole Constable drew a bases-loaded walk to bring in Quinnipiac's 11th run of the game. Quinnipiac added four more runs in the inning thanks to two-run singles from Sean McCulloch and Sebastian Mueller.
NEWS AND NOTES
- Six of the nine starters recorded at least one hit in the win against Iona and three recorded multiple hits.
- Four pitchers combined to allow just seven hits, while striking out 11 in the MAAC opener.
- Sean McCulloch drove in two more runs to push his season total to 12, good for third on the team.
- Christian Smith picked up a hit to extend his hit streak to ten games.
- Smith's home run in the first inning tied him for the team lead (4).
- Sebastian Mueller recorded three hits and pushed his hitting streak to 12 games.
- Mueller recorded five RBIs in the win, pushing his season total to 21, tied for the team lead.
- The Bobcats recorded six stolen bases in the win.
- The Bobcats will battle the Gaels in the middle game of the three-game set with first pitch scheduled for 1 PM.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Kabel, Jack (1-0)
L: Kuentzel (0-3)
Batting:
2B: Rodriguez 1 ; Mora 1
RBI: Stephenson 1 ; Frias 3 ; Febo 1 ; Wessels 1 ; Mora 1
SH: Zollo 1
SF: Frias 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Rodriguez 1 ; Stephenson 1 ; Frias 1 ; Overton 1 ; Zollo 1 ; Wessels 1 ; Mora 2
CS: Mora 1
HBP: Rodriguez 1 ; Stephenson 1 ; Overton 3 ; Febo 1 ; Mora 1
Batting:
HR: Smith, Christian 1
RBI: McCulloch, Sean 2 ; Garbowski, Kyle 1 ; Mueller, Sebastian 5 ; Smith, Christian 2 ; Willis, CJ 2 ; Constable, Cole 1
SF: Garbowski, Kyle 1
Base Running:
RUNS: McCulloch, Sean 3 ; Garbowski, Kyle 1 ; Mueller, Sebastian 1 ; Smith, Christian 2 ; Irizarry, Alex 1 ; Knox, Johnny 1 ; Marino, James 1 ; Wright, Gabe 1 ; Willis, CJ 3 ; Constable, Cole 1
SB: McCulloch, Sean 2 ; Knox, Johnny 1 ; Willis, CJ 2 ; Constable, Cole 1
HBP: Garbowski, Kyle 1 ; Mueller, Sebastian 1 ; Smith, Christian 1 ; Irizarry, Alex 1 ; Marino, James 1 ; Willis, CJ 1 ; Constable, Cole 1
