QU Welcomes Rider for Final Home Series of Regular Season

Thursday, May 7

Hamden, Conn.

3:00 PM

Quinnipiac University

Rider

Baseball Dugout Picture Against Fairfield (May 3, 2026 in Hamden, Conn.)

Photo by: Izzy DiBari

QU Welcomes Rider for Final Home Series of Regular Season

5/6/2026 12:10:00 PM | Baseball

Quinnipiac Bobcats (22-23, 13-11 MAAC) vs. Rider Broncs (25-16, 17-7 MAAC)
Date: Thursday, May 7^th
Time: 3:00 PM
Location: Quinnipiac Baseball Field | Hamden, Conn.
Watch: Click Here | Live Stats: Click Here | @TheQBaseball

Quinnipiac Bobcats vs. Rider Broncs
Date: Friday, May 8^th
Time: 12:00 PM
Location: Quinnipiac Baseball Field | Hamden, Conn.
Watch: Click Here | Live Stats: Click Here | @TheQBaseball

Quinnipiac Bobcats vs. Rider Broncs
Date: Friday, May 8^th
Time: 4:00 PM
Location: Quinnipiac Baseball Field | Hamden, Conn.
Watch: Click Here | Live Stats: Click Here | @TheQBaseball

Hamden, Conn. - The Quinnipiac baseball team will host their final home series of the season, welcoming the Rider Broncs to Hamden for a three-game set. The Bobcats and Broncs will kick off the series on Thursday, May 7^th, at 3 PM, before closing the series with a doubleheader on Friday, May 8^th, starting at noon.

WEEKLY AWARDS

Andrew Rubayo was named the MAAC Co-Pitcher of the Week after tossing a gem in the series-opening victory over the Fairfield Stags.

LAST TIME OUT

The Quinnipiac Bobcats won their third straight MAAC series, defeating the Fairfield Stags in the three-game set (May 1-3).
Andrew Rubayo tossed a gem (7.0 IP, 3H, 0R, 6K) to lead the Bobcats to a 7-0 win over Fairfield in the opener. Christian Smith and Alex Irizarry combined for five RBIs in the win.
The Stags bounced back on Saturday in the second game of the series, winning 11-2. Matt Bucciero drove in three runs for the Stags, leading them to the win to even the series.
Quinnipiac and Fairfield battled back and forth on Sunday, but James Marino walked it off to give the Bobcats a 5-4 win to claim the series.

HISTORY VS. RIDER

Thursday's matchup will mark the 32^nd time the Bobcats and Broncs will face off since March 14^th, 2002.
The Rider Broncs lead the all-time series, 20-11.
The Bobcats and Broncs faced off five times last season, with the Bobcats taking the regular-season series, two games to one.
The Broncs took the two meetings in the 2025 MAAC Championships to end Quinnipiac's season.

SCOUTING THE BRONCS

The Rider Broncs enter the conference series with a 25-16 overall record and a 17-7 mark in conference play. Rider currently sits in first place in the MAAC standings with six games left in the regular season.
Rider currently has the highest batting average (.299) in the conference, and the most runs scored (322) this season. In conference play, the Broncs are hitting .301 in 25 contests, which ranks first in the league.
The Rider pitching staff holds the league's second-lowest ERA (4.23) through conference play and the second-fewest runs allowed (124).
The Broncs have won seven of their eight MAAC series so far this season, defeating Sacred Heart, Siena, Mount St. Mary's, Canisius, Marist, Fairfield, and Manhattan, and dropping their lone series to Niagara.
Last time out, the Broncs dropped a three-game set to the Niagara Purple Eagles in Western New York. The Broncs took the middle game of the series, 26-2, but dropped game one (12-3) and game three (1-0).
The Broncs have five hitters batting over .300 this season, with Erich Hartmann leading the way with a .352 batting average in 40 starts this season. Five Broncs have driven in 30+ RBIs this season: Charley Magoulick, Kyle Neri, Anthony Paskell, Nick Shuhet, and Erich Hartmann.

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

Batting Average: Alex Irizarry (.307)
Runs: Alex Irizarry (35)
Hits: Caden Williamson (54)
Doubles: Christian Smith (14)
Triples: Kyle Garbowski (2)
Home Runs: Christian Smith, James Marino (6)
RBIs: James Marino (33)
Stolen Bases: Chase Camac, Cole Constable (11)
ERA: Andrew Rubayo (3.52)
WHIP: Andrew Rubayo (1.25)
Wins: Andrew Rubayo (5)
Saves: Matt Alduino (5)
Innings Pitched: Andrew Rubayo (64.0)
Strikeouts: Andrew Rubayo (67)

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 battle the Merrimack Warriors in the final series of the regular season, starting on May 14^th and ending on May 16^th in North Andover, Massachusetts.

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