Issue 21, Volume 82

QUChronicle.com March 20, 2013 Volume 82 Issue 21

Sports No. 1 ‘Cats, page 4

SHALL WE DANCE?

Junior forward Brittany McQuain averaged a doubledouble in the Northeast Conference tournament, winning tournament MVP, to propel the Bobcats to their first trip to the NCAA tournament.

Photo by Matt Eisenberg/Chronicle

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

2|Sports

meet The Staff

March 20, 2013

The championship saga

By Joe Addonizio Sports Editor

THE DISAPPOINTMENT March 6, 2012

SENIOR MANAGING EDITOR Anna Brundage Senior Managing Editor Samantha Epstein MANAGING EDITOR Matt Eisenberg NEWS EDITOR Katherine Rojas ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR Daniel Grosso ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR Julia Perkins CO-ARTS & LIFE EDITOR Catherine Boudreau Co-Arts & Life Editor Christine Burroni ASSOCIATE ARTS & LIFE EDITOR Anna Wagner ASSOCIATE ARTS & LIFE EDITOR Caroline Tufts SPORTS EDITOR Joe Addonizio ASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR Kerry Healy ASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR Bryan Lipiner PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR Madeline Hardy COPY DESK CHIEF Cassie Comeau ASSOCIATE COPY EDITOR Rebecca Castagna WEB DEVELOPER Marcus Harun DESIGN EDITOR Hannah Schindler

Following a disappointing end to last season when the Quinnipiac women’s basketball team fell to Monmouth at home, 69-66, in the semifinals of the Northeast Conference Tournament, head coach Tricia Fabbri got her first postgame text.

The text was from now sophomore guard Gillian Abshire and simply said, “coach we’re going to get it next year.”

Fabbri said, from that point on, that was the “sentiment” of the team and that it was “unwavering” to see what its goal was. Abshire’s text stood true.

THE TRIUMPH March 17, 2013 Top-seeded Quinnipiac was crowned with its first NEC Tournament championship trophy Sunday evening with a 72-33 victory over No. 4 Saint Francis (Pa.). It now will go the big dance for the first time in the history of the men’s or women’s basketball program.

“Right now, it’s really surreal and we are just trying to let it all sink in but this is everything we’ve talked about since we lost to Monmouth in that semifinal game last year,” junior forward Brittany McQuain said. “I think that finally accomplishing it is exactly what we wanted and I’m so proud of everything we’ve done.”

Fabbri also showed her excitement in the postgame conference.

“So thrilled for the program to win its first NEC championship,” Fabbri said. “So pleased for all 15 young ladies who came together and grew as a team. So excited for my staff who has been phenomenal all year long putting together a great roster for us to go out and compete with and just thrilled that John Lahey, Mark Thompson and Jack McDonald are the leaders of the university that allow us to go out and do what we have to, do what we want to, do what we need to do, to make this program a winner.”

THE TITLE GAME March 17, 2013

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As for the game, it was all Quinnipiac from the start. It began the game on a 11-3 run and the Red Flash’s only lead of the game was following its opening possession when it nailed a 3-pointer to take a 3-2 lead. After that, the Red Flash went 8:02 without putting a point up, missing 11 straight shots from the floor and two free throws during that span.

Lisa Lebak, who entered the game averaging just 2.2 points per game, nailed two 3-pointers in the first half to set the pace for the Bobcats. She also added seven rebounds and two assists and didn’t turn the ball over once in the first 20 minutes.

“Lisa has been playing the best ball of her career for the last 10 games and she has been running the

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Check out a gallery of the NEC Championship game online.

THE Selection Show March 18, 2013

THE BIG DANCE March 23, 2013

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The women’s basketball team celebrates with the NEC Tournament trophy following a 72-33 punishment of Saint Francis (Pa.), the biggest victory in the history of the conference. team and then there’s always one 3 every bri was able to give her two seniors a warm game she hit that was always in a big spot and round of applause from the crowd as she took them out of the game for the last time at the today there was no exception,” Fabbri said.

Senior guard Felicia Barron led the Bobcats TD Bank Sports Center. As each of them made heading into the locker room with seven points their way to the bench, Fabbri gave them a hug and a 32-15 lead. She would finish the game and whispered one thing into their ear.

“Thanks for making my dream come true,” with nine points, five rebounds and four steals.

In the second half it was all Quinnipiac Fabbri said. once again through the first 10 minutes. Saint Francis didn’t get its first basket of the second half until 2:45 in and then it went 8:56 On Monday night, the team watched the before scoring again. The Bobcats rallied for 18 points during the span and held a 55- name it wears on the front of its gold and 17 lead with 8:34 seconds remaining in the blue jerseys appear in front of the players’ eyes on the TV screen in the NCAA selecgame.

Although the Bobcats’ defense was stifling tion show.

“You know, you dream of that as a little the whole game, allowing the lowest point total in the 18-year history of the NEC, the most girl growing up,” Lebak said. “It’s the only impressive stat may have been the lack of thing you want to see, you and your school’s points for Saint Francis forward Alli Williams, name in lights on the big screen and you know who led her team in scoring at 17.5 points per what, we finally accomplished that and it’s the game which was second in the NEC. Williams best feeling ever. You accomplished a goal you finished the first half with no points on 0-of- set since you were little and it’s awesome.”

Fabbri, who was named NEC Coach of 4 shooting and got just one basket to fall in the second on a layup. She also turned the ball the Year this season after completing a perfect 18-0 conference schedule, is in her 18th year over three times.

McQuain ended up leading the Bobcats at Quinnipiac and has brought the program up with eight points in the second half to finish from the bottom.

“For me, this is fantastic,” Fabbri exwith a game-high 14. She also grabbed seven rebounds and was named NEC Tournament claimed. “Personally, watching Quinnipiac go MVP averaging 11.67 points per game to go up on the screen in the field of 64 is just my dream come true.” along with 10.3 rebounds per game.

Not only did Quinnipiac complete the Sophomore guard Jasmine Martin, who was the spark in the second half that propelled regular season sweep of the conference, but Quinnipiac in the semifinals, picked up two it added three more tournament wins to that early fouls and sat for most of the first half. mark, making it a perfect 21-0 against conferShe, however, never worried that her sitting ence opponents in its last season in the NEC. The last opponent to top the Bobcats was would hurt her team.

“I’m so proud of my team, how they Monmouth in the aforementioned semifinal stepped up,” Martin said. “I wasn’t worried game more than a year ago.

The win also extended the team’s winning for a second. I really wasn’t. The passion that I have seen in the 14 other of my teammates is streak to 22 games and gave it 30 wins on the unreal and I knew that they were going to hold season, both of which are program records. us down. It was amazing to watch the first half Quinnipiac is also just one of six teams in the because I didn't play. It was amazing to watch NCAA to finish with 30 wins joining powerhouses Duke, Baylor, Notre Dame, Delaware what my team was capable of.”

Samantha Guastella finished in second in and Stamford. scoring for the Bobcats with 10 points off the bench along with seven rebounds. Martin finished with eight points and Abshire had six to The Bobcats earned a No. 13 seed in the go along with six assists and eight rebounds, NCAA Tournament and will face No. 4 seed both of which led the team.

For the Red Flash, Alexa Hayward was the Maryland on Saturday in College Park, Md. “They’re going to be excited to go out and top scorer with eight. Kelley Doogan was the only other player with more than four points as not only represent Quinnipiac but the Northeast Conference really well. We’re going to be she finished with six off the bench.

The Bobcats also dominated on the boards, very very excited about where we are going and who we are going to play because I know outrebounding Saint Francis 54-38.

With 1:41 remaining in the game, Fab- these young ladies they compete.”

Watch fans storm the court and the team cut down the net.

connect

Editor-in-chief Michele Snow

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

@quchronicle

March 20, 2013

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

AWARD

Sports|3

SEASON Brittany Mcquain 2013 Tournament MVP NEC All-Tournament Team 2013 NEC Regular Season Second-Team

Felicia barron NEC Defensive Player of the Year NEC All-Tournament Team 2013 NEC Regular Season First-Team

Jasmine martin Tricia fabbri

NEC All-Tournament Team 2013 NEC Regular Season Third-Team

NEC Coach of the Year

Martin: ‘We’re ready to shock the world’

By Dan Dolph Staff Writer

The Quinnipiac women’s basketball team will play the University of Maryland in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday in College Park, Md. On Monday night, the women’s basketball team, coaches and school administrators gathered in the University Club at the TD Bank Sports Center to watch the seeding of the 64team field revealed live on ESPN. The selection committee awarded the Northeast Conference Champion Quinnipiac Bobcats (30-2), who earned an automatic bid into the tournament by winning the NEC title, the No. 13 seed in the Bridgeport region.

They will travel to the University of Maryland to take on the nationally ranked (No. 10/12) and fourth-seeded Terrapins (24-7) this weekend, where they believe they can be a bracket buster, despite being a little known team to much of the nation.

“We’re ready to shock the world,” captain Jasmine Martin said after learning her team will play Maryland. “We’ve already done something that’s never been done in school history, now we’re trying to make NEC history. We’ll do whatever it takes, and we’ll keep fighting until we lose.”

The team finished the season with an 18-0 record within the NEC, and concluded the

regular season schedule with an overall mark of 30-2, on its way to winning the basketball program’s first conference title in 18 years in the NEC. Its only two losses were at the hands of Hartford and Georgia Tech, both of which came in December. Since the loss to Georgia Tech, the Bobcats have rattled off 22 straight victories and enter the NCAA Tournament with momentum and confidence.

“They’re just another team with jerseys on, just like us,” senior Felicia Barron said.

“We’re not going to look at their name as being any different than ours.”

“They’re (the media) is going to ask ‘Who’s Quinnipiac?’” Barron added. “We’re going to go down there and show them who we are.”

There was a sense of pride, accomplishment and excitement at the viewing party. The NEC Championship trophy was on full display, draped over it was the net that the team had cut down days before upon capturing the NEC title.

The team, which sat together in three rows of seats watching the seeds being announced, erupted upon hearing its name mentioned on ESPN in the same conversation as basketball powerhouses including Baylor and UConn.

The significance of the moment became palpable when seeing members of the school administration sitting behind the players to

watch the historic moment.

In attendance was Bill Schweizer and Billy Mecca, Quinnipiac’s basketball broadcasting tandem, Mark Thompson, senior vice president for academic and student affairs, Dominic Yoia, associate vice president & university director of financial aid, John Morgan, associate vice president for public relations, and Al Carbone, associate dean of admissions.

Administrators in the athletic department spoke about the significance of a NCAA Tournament appearance for continued growth of the athletic department as well as the positive effect such an accomplishment has for the university.

“It’s just another great step for Quinnipiac,” Director of Athletics and Recreation Jack McDonald said. “We continue to have benchmark moments even after 18 years of Division I athletics. I think it validates to the general public what a great place this is. I know it, but the people around the country who are going to watch the show tonight will see Quinnipiac in the bracket and say, ‘Wow, that’s a pretty good school.’”

Quinnipiac head coach Tricia Fabbri embraced the moment but was ready to continue with the season.

“We’ve had such a good year,” Fabbri said.

“Getting 30 wins is a number that may never be seen again while I’m here because it’s a ton of wins. So, we’re a confident team and I think

we play really good defense and that translates into really good offense, and we’re feeling good about everything we’re doing.”

The Terrapins have won 10 Atlantic Coast Conference championships and, in 2006, won the national championship. This season, they finished in third place behind Duke and the University of North Carolina.

They also lost to the Tar Heels in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament, 72-65, on March 9.

Their head coach, Brenda Frese, won her third ACC Coach of the Year award this season.

They present two big threats down low in Alyssa Thomas and Tianna Hawkins who average more than 18 points per game each while also combining for 20 rebounds a game.

They have led the Terrapins to the eighth best scoring offense in the country, averaging 75.9 points per game. Quinnipiac comes in at 25th in the same category with 71.1 points per game. Maryland also succeeds at what has been Quinnipiac’s forte lately, in rebounding averaging 44.2 rebounds per game and possess the second best rebounding margin in the country at 14.2. The Bobcats average 40.2 rebounds per game on the season but hold a rebounding margin of -2.7 If the Bobcats get past Maryland, they will play the winner of No. 5 Michigan State and No. 12 Marist at College Park, on Monday.

4|Sports

The Quinnipiac Chronicle

coach’s corner

Sports

“How united this team is in achieving one goal is what has been so special for me as a person and coach who has done this my entire life.”

— Tricia fabbri Women’s basketball

u o F

o , s m a e t r

Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2 Saturday, 4 p.m.

Associate Sports Editor

Atlantic City, N.J., has always been home to the nightlife, the casinos, the beaches…

Since 2011, however, it has been home to the ECAC men’s ice hockey championship.

The Quinnipiac men’s ice hockey team travels to Atlantic City for the first time Friday when it takes on Brown in the ECAC semifinals at Boardwalk Hall at 4 p.m.

The Bobcats and Bears tied both meetings this year. Connor Jones scored the lone Bobcat goal, while Eric Hartzell stopped 30 of 31 shots in a 1-1 tie on Feb. 1 at Meehan Auditorium. Across the sheet, Brown goaltender

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n o f e C r : e l n a c o e g titl e n

third-place game

By Bryan Lipiner

March 20, 2013

Semifinals

No. 7 Brown vs. No. 1 Quinnipiac Friday, 4 p.m.

No. 4 Union vs. No. 3 Yale Friday, 7:30 p.m.

Anthony Borelli made 38 saves on 39 shots.

This is Borelli’s first season as the starting goaltender, and the stats prove it could not be any more spectacular. Through 26 games played, the junior has recorded a .942 save percentage and a 1.87 goals against average, good for first and third in the ECAC, respectively. Borelli’s save percentage also ranks third in the nation.

In their second contest of the year, the Bobcats and Bears played to a 3-3 final in Hamden. Jordan Samuels-Thomas scored twice, while Russell Goodman added a tally of his own. Quinnipiac held a 3-1 lead until 17:44 of the third period, when Brown slashed

e on

the

line

Championship game Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2 Saturday, 7 p.m.

Champion earns automatic bid to NCAA Tournament

the lead to 3-2. Twenty-four seconds later, the Bears tied the game at 3, forcing a scoreless overtime.

This past weekend, in what was one of the more eventful playoff series in program history, Quinnipiac defeated Cornell in three games, the series-clinching goal coming in double overtime off the stick of Kevin Bui. Game 2 was also extraordinary, as the Bobcats defeated the Big Red, 10-0, scoring in double-digits for the first time since Nov. 11, 2000, vs. Fairfield.

As for Brown, the Bears upset the favored Rensselaer in three games last weekend, even though the Engineers outscored Brown, 9-8, in the series. In the first round of ECAC Tour-

nament play, the Bears swept Clarkson in two games, downing the Golden Knights 3-0 and 4-3.

On the offensive side of the puck, Matt Lorito leads Brown with 20 goals and 35 points.

Dennis Robertson tops the squad in the assist column, as the junior defenseman has notched 16 on the year.

In 2011-12, Quinnipiac defeated Brown in three games in the first round of the ECAC Tournament. In 2010-11, the Bobcats also defeated the Bears in the first round, this time coming via a two-game sweep.

The Bobcats are currently first in the PairWise rankings, trailed by Minnesota.

Bui buries game-winner to send ‘Cats to semis

Anna Brundage/Chronicle

Quinnipiac celebrates while Cornell players collapse in disbelief after Kevin Bui scored the game-winning goal in the second overtime in Sunday’s Game 3.

By Nick solari Staff Writer

The Quinnipiac men’s ice hockey team has faced adversity all year long.

Trying to maintain a 21-game unbeaten streak and dealing with the target of being the nation’s No. 1 team for five weeks are just examples of the pressure that the Bobcats have faced.

Sunday night, in the third and final game of the ECAC quarterfinals against Cornell at the High Point Solutions Arena, Quinnipiac faced even more adversity. Down 2-1 with a minute remaining, the Bobcats pulled goalie Eric Hartzell.

Looking for a goal, senior forward Clay Harvey found the puck amid a scrum of bodies in front of the Cornell net and blasted

it past goalie Andy Iles to tie the game at 2 with only 1:04 remaining. After a scoreless first overtime, Kevin Bui then won it for the Bobcats 14:08 into the second overtime period, putting it through the five-hole of Iles.

With the 3-2 win, Quinnipiac moves on to the ECAC semifinals this weekend in Atlantic City.

“That was a great college hockey game,” Quinnipiac head coach Rand Pecknold said.

“I’m extremely excited. It was some good drama, and our guys battled back well.”

For Bui, it was his second goal of the season.

“I was just trying to get up ice as quick as I possibly could,” Bui said. “I found a way to get it past Iles, and the next thing I know a bunch of bodies are on top of me celebrating.”

Matt eisenberg/Chronicle

Loren Barron (left) and Zack Currie (right) skate over to Kevin Bui after his gamewinning goal in double overtime of Game 3 of the ECAC Hockey quarterfinals.

For Cornell, the story of the night was Iles.

The junior goalie made 60 saves.

“Iles was the best player on the ice, just like Friday night,” Pecknold said. “I give him a lot of credit.”

On the other side of the ice, Hartzell made 29 saves of his own.

Quinnipiac will play Brown next Friday, in hopes of advancing to the ECAC championship game on Saturday.

“We played three really tough games in three days,” Pecknold said. “We’ve got to get some rest, then get ready for next weekend.”

Braden Birch netted the first goal of the night only 48 seconds in. He skated past two Quinnipiac defenders, then went top shelf on Hartzell, ending the Bobcats’ streak of scoring the game’s first goal at seven.

Quinnipiac then tied the game with 10:16 left in the second period as junior defenseman Zach Tolkinen drilled a shot from the point past Iles.

The Big Red regained the lead only 64 seconds later when Cornell forward Brian Ferlin sniped a shot past Hartzell. It was Ferlin’s third goal of the series.

Harvey netted the goal to tie the game, and Bui to win it.

The Bobcats outshot the Big Red, 15-8, in the first overtime, then 14-1 in the second.

Loren Barron, Jordan Samuels-Thomas and Jeremy Langlois all had an assist on the night.

Ten posts were hit on the night, five by each team. Quinnipiac found iron twice in the two overtime periods, Cornell once.