Bobcats Dominate Merrimack For 13th Straight Victory

Saturday, January 31

Hamden, Conn.

2:00 PM

Quinnipiac University

18-4,13-0MAAC

Merrimack

11-10,8-4MAAC

Merrimack

Quinnipiac

Photo by: Izzy DiBari

Bobcats Dominate Merrimack For 13th Straight Victory

1/31/2026 9:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Hamden, Conn. – The Quinnipiac Bobcats continued their winning ways, defeating the Merrimack Warriors, 80-53, on Saturday afternoon in Hamden. With the win, the Bobcats improved to 13-0 in conference play and 18-4 overall.

Karson Martin led the Bobcats in scoring for the second straight game, dropping 21 points on 8-for-12 (67%) shooting from the field. Martin shot 4-for-6 (67%) from beyond the arc, leading the team in made threes in the game. Ella O'Donnell had another big day, scoring 17 points on 73% shooting (8-for-11). O'Donnell stuffed the stat sheet as she finished with five rebounds, six assists, and four steals in the win. Paige Girardi set a new season-high with 13 points in the win. Girardi knocked down three of four three-point attempts and dished out a team-high seven assists in the effort. Nine Bobcats recorded points in the twenty-seven-point win over the Warriors.

FINAL SCORE
Quinnipiac 80, Merrimack 53

RECORDS
Quinnipiac (18-4, 13-0 MAAC) | Merrimack (11-10, 8-4 MAAC)

BOBCAT HIGHS
Points: Karson Martin - 21
Rebounds: Ella O'Donnell - 5
Assists: Paige Girardi - 7
Steals: Ella O'Donnell - 4

GAME REWIND
The Warriors got on the board first just 24 seconds into the contest, but the Bobcats immediately responded, scoring the next six points to take a four-point lead. Quinnipiac and Merrimack traded points after that point, but the Bobcats held an 11-8 lead at the first quarter media timeout. Out of the break, the Bobcats would outscore the Warriors 7-6 in the final four minutes to take an 18-14 lead after the first ten minutes.

She's not going to miss with that much space 🤷‍♀️ #BeGreatToday pic.twitter.com/VA4uTZe8jL
— Quinnipiac Women's Basketball (@QU_WBB) January 31, 2026

Merrimack got within one to begin the second quarter, but Quinnipiac responded with a 13-6 scoring run to take a 31-23 lead into the media timeout. Out of the break, Quinnipiac built on their lead, outscoring the Warriors, 9-4, in the final four minutes of the half to take a 40-27 lead into the locker room.

This girl is on FIREEEE 🔥 #BeGreatToday pic.twitter.com/VuGSzdlm0w
— Quinnipiac Women's Basketball (@QU_WBB) January 31, 2026

Quinnipiac came out firing in the third quarter, pushing their lead to 15 as Merrimack called an early timeout. Out of the timeout, the Bobcats continued to grow their lead as they took a 55-36 lead at the halfway point of the quarter. More scoring from the Bobcats saw them take a 67-41 lead into the final quarter.

JACKIE BEATS THE BUZZER 💰 #BeGreatToday x #SCTopTen pic.twitter.com/5hSsVzNLxP
— Quinnipiac Women's Basketball (@QU_WBB) January 31, 2026

Quinnipiac's lead got as high as 32 in the final quarter, but a few points from the Warriors made it an 80-53 game at the final buzzer as Quinnipiac won their 13^th straight game, tied for the fifth-longest active winning streak in the country.

NUMBERS AND NOTES

Karson Martin led the Bobcats in scoring for the second straight game, dropping 21 points on 8-for-12 (67%) shooting from the field. Martin shot 4-for-6 (67%) from beyond the arc, leading the team in made threes in the game.
Martin has scored 10 or more points in eight games this season and in the last three games.
Ella O'Donnell had another big day, scoring 17 points on 73% shooting (8-for-11). O'Donnell stuffed the stat sheet as she finished with five rebounds, six assists, and four steals in the win.
O'Donnell has recorded double-digit point totals in 17 games this season.
O'Donnell is currently second on the team with 72 assists this season and has 157 in her collegiate career.
O'Donnell tracked down three offensive rebounds in the win, giving her 44 on the season, which leads the team.
Paige Girardi set a new season-high with 13 points in the win. Girardi knocked down three of four three-point attempts and dished out a team-high seven assists in the effort.
Girardi has scored 5+ points in the last four contests.
Girardi leads the team with 75 assists this season and has accumulated 136 in her three seasons at QU.
Nine Bobcats recorded points in the twenty-seven-point win over the Warriors.
Ten Bobcats grabbed at least one rebound, with seven recording two or more.
Five Bobcats dished out at least one assist in the game, with four dishing out at least two in the win.
Seven Bobcats recorded a steal in the win, with five recording at least two against the Warriors.
Quinnipiac has led at the half in all but one game this season and are 18-3 in games in which they enter the halftime break with the lead.
The Bobcats had their best shooting performance of the season, going 33-for-56 (58.9%) from the field and 10-for-18 (55.6%) from three-point range.
Quinnipiac recorded 20 assists as a team on 33 made field goals. The Bobcats have recorded 10+ assists in all but one contest this year (7 – vs. St. John's). Quinnipiac is 6-0 this season when they record at least 20 assists in the game.
Quinnipiac has recorded 10+ assists in all thirteen MAAC games so far this season and ranks second in the MAAC in total assists.
The Bobcats outrebounded the Warriors, 30-26. Quinnipiac has only been outrebounded in six contests this season and only two throughout conference play. The Bobcats are 15-0 this season when they outrebound their opponents.
Quinnipiac is 2-0 this season when they score 80 or more points and are 10-1 when scoring 70+ points.
The Bobcats have held their opponents to 60 or fewer points in 17 games this season and are 16-1 in those contests.
QU improved to 13-0 in conference play, besting their 7-0 start to conference play a season ago. This is the best start to conference play since the 2018-19 season.
Quinnipiac's 13-game win streak is currently tied for the fifth-longest active streak in the country.
The Bobcats are the only remaining unbeaten team in the MAAC.
Out of eighteen wins this season, the Bobcats have defeated seventeen of those teams by ten or more points, nine by 20+, and two by 30+.

WHO'S NEXT?

The Bobcats hit the road and head to Western New York to face Canisius and Niagara next weekend.
Tip-off against Canisius is set for 6:30 PM on Thursday, Feb. 5, and can be seen on ESPN+.

To stay up to date with all Quinnipiac women's basketball news, follow the program on Twitter/Instagram @QU_WBB or visit www.gobobcats.com/wbb.