Baseball Welcomes In-State Rival Fairfield to Hamden

Friday, May 1

Hamden, Conn.

3:00 PM

Quinnipiac University

Fairfield

Baseball Team Huddle (April 26, 2026 in Hamden, Conn.)

Photo by: Quinnipiac Athletics

Baseball Welcomes In-State Rival Fairfield to Hamden

4/30/2026 11:59:00 AM | Baseball

Quinnipiac Bobcats (20-22, 11-10 MAAC) vs. Fairfield Stags (21-17, 15-6 MAAC)
Date: Friday, May 1^st
Time: 3:00 PM
Location: Quinnipiac Baseball Field | Hamden, Conn.
Watch: Click Here | Live Stats: Click Here | @TheQBaseball

Quinnipiac Bobcats vs. Fairfield Stags
Date: Saturday, May 2^nd
Time: 2:30 PM
Location: Quinnipiac Baseball Field | Hamden, Conn.
Watch: Click Here | Live Stats: Click Here | @TheQBaseball

Quinnipiac Bobcats vs. Fairfield Stags
Date: Sunday, May 3^rd
Time: 1:00 PM
Location: Quinnipiac Baseball Field | Hamden, Conn.
Watch: Click Here | Live Stats: Click Here | @TheQBaseball

Hamden, Conn. – The Quinnipiac baseball team will welcome the Fairfield Stags to Hamden for an in-state MAAC series. Quinnipiac and Fairfield will battle in the series opener on Friday, May 1^st, at 3 PM.

Game two of the series will be played on Saturday, May 2^nd, with the first pitch at 2:30 PM, and the series finale is slated for Sunday at 1 PM.

LAST TIME OUT

The Quinnipiac Bobcats took a crucial three-game series against the Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers last weekend in Hamden (April 24-26).
After dropping the series opener to the Mountaineers, 11-1, the Bobcats bounced back on Saturday with a 4-3 win. Peyton Vancas delivered the walk-off hit in the bottom of the tenth inning to even the series at one game apiece.
Quinnipiac and the Mount battled to another one-run game on Sunday, with Quinnipiac taking the finale 3-2. Chase Camac drove in the game-winning run with his two-run single in the sixth. J.c. Franconere recorded his first save of the season, getting a game-ending double play with the bases loaded in the ninth.

HISTORY VS. FAIRFIELD

Friday's matchup will mark the 42^nd time the Bobcats and Stags will face off since April 24^th, 2008.
Fairfield leads the series, 29-12.
The Bobcats and Stags last faced off a season ago, where the Stags took the three-game series, two games to one. After dropping the first two games of the series, they defeated the Stags 11-5 in the finale.
The series this season marks the first time the Stags have come to Hamden since 2022.

SCOUTING THE STAGS

The Fairfield Stags enter the weekend series with a 21-17 overall record and a 15-6 mark in conference play. Fairfield currently sits in third place in the MAAC standings with nine games left in the regular season.
Fairfield currently has the lowest batting average (.244) in the conference, and the eighth-most runs scored (240) this season. In conference play, the Stags are hitting .230 in 18 contests, which ranks last in the league.
The Fairfield pitching staff holds the league's lowest ERA (3.76) this season, and the fewest runs allowed (78).
The Stags have won five of their seven MAAC series so far this season, defeating Manhattan, Saint Peter's, Merrimack, Mount St. Mary's, and Iona, while falling to Siena and Rider.
The Stags have dropped their last two contests and are coming off a midweek loss to Stony Brook, 12-10.
Matthew Bucciero leads the Stags with a .315 batting average this season. Bucciero has hit 15 homers this year and has driven in 38 RBIs, both of which lead the team.

BOBCAT LEADERS (Among Players that Qualify: 2PA/G and 75% of Games Played)

Batting Average: Jack Balcer (.308)
Runs: Alex Irizarry (32)
Hits: Caden Williamson (51)
Doubles: Christian Smith (14)
Triples: Kyle Garbowski (2)
Home Runs: Christian Smith (5)
RBIs: Alex Irizarry (30)
Stolen Bases: Chase Camac (10)
ERA: Andrew Rubayo (3.95)
WHIP: Andrew Rubayo (1.33)
Wins: Andrew Rubayo (4)
Saves: Matt Alduino (5)
Innings Pitched: Andrew Rubayo (57.0)
Strikeouts: Andrew Rubayo (61)

PRESEASON ACCOLADES

The Quinnipiac Baseball team was picked to finish 3^rd in the MAAC Preseason Poll after last season ended in the MAAC Semifinal round against the Rider Broncs.
Christian Smith was named to the Preseason All-MAAC team as he returns to Hamden.
Smith finished the year with a .329 batting average in 56 contests. Smith tied for the team lead in home runs with 15 and led the Bobcats with 67 runs batted in.
Smith had a tremendous MAAC Tournament last season, finishing the week with a .375 clip (6-for-16), while driving in nine runs in the five games in Pomona, earning him a nod on the All-Tournament team.

KEY RETURNERS

The Bobcats return 19 players from last year's team, with of those players seeing game action.
Of those returners, nine are pitchers: J.C. Franconere, Sam Wright, Griffin Seibel, Mike Poncini, Matt Alduino, Nick Balcom, Andrew Rubayo, Josh Lajoie, and Mason Ulsh.
Ten position players return: Cole Constable, Kyle Garbowski, Sam Ametrano, Christian Smith, Alex Irizarry, Luke Zeisloft, James Marino, Matt Park, Ian Nilsen, and Christian Nilsen.

LOTS OF NEW FACES

Quinnipiac welcomes 16 new faces to its campus this season.
The Bobcats used the transfer portal to bring in sophomore right-handed pitcher Maddex Labuda (Liberty), junior outfield/first baseman Jack Balcer (Widener), senior right-handed pitcher James Pazdera, and graduate outfielder Brendan Edvardsen (AIC).
Quinnipiac also brought in 12 first years, with six being pitchers and six being position players, Peyton Vancas (Pleasant Gap, Pa.), Timothy Park (Bridgewater, NJ.), Chase Camac (Northfield, NJ.), Caden Williamson (Broomfield, Co.), Teagan Beames (New Fairfield, Conn.), Brayden Hromada (Center Moriches, NY.), Joseph Hiller (Center Moriches, NY.), Kevin Rusinak (Manalapan, NJ.), Ethan Freed (Limerick, Pa.), Frank Orrei (Verona, NJ.), Langdon Hazen (Underhill, VT.), and Jacob Belecky (Komoka, Ontario, Canada).

NEXT TIME OUT

The Bobcats will take on the Rider Broncs in their final home weekend of the regular season. QU and Rider will kick off the series on Thursday, May 7^th, at 3 PM before closing out the series with a doubleheader on Friday, May 8^th, starting at noon.

For more information on the Quinnipiac baseball team, visit gobobcats.com/baseball and follow the team on Twitter/X, @TheQBaseball, and Instagram, @TheQBaseball.