By: Josh Silverman
Follow @JoshMSilverman
The Quinnipiac Bobcats field hockey team fell to the Northeastern Huskies 2-1 in the regular season home opener on Friday.
Even with a non-conference loss, head coach Becca Main took away plenty of positives from the game.
“Whenever you play a Boston team, they’re big and they’re strong and very physical,” Main said. “But we’re fast and quick and fit so I think we have to learn when we play those teams, which you’re going to see those in the UConn’s and the Liberty’s in terms of the Big East, we have to be able to match that and understand ‘you’re not that strong but you are faster’.”
A last minute goal by Jamie Bartucca propelled Northeastern to yet another victory over Quinnipiac, marking the 11th time the Huskies beat the Bobcats.
Nonetheless, Quinnipiac kept pace with Northeastern’s speed and intensity throughout the game.
Had it not been for a Quinnipiac goal that was called back in the early going, the game would likely have gone into overtime.
Northeastern switched goaltenders at halftime, but Livy Golini played the entire game for Quinnipiac. The sophomore goaltender stopped five shots, however it was the two she didn’t that sealed the deal.
The loss also means Quinnipiac will have to continue searching for its first win of the season.
Friday was the Bobcats’ first regular season matchup at the newly furnished Quinnipiac Field Hockey Complex. The new stadium means the Bobcats won’t have to travel to Yale to play their home games anymore, something Main believes will add rhythm to her team.
“We looked at last year, especially September, and we were physically exhausted from the travel back-and-forth to Yale,” Main said. “I think you saw it today, our fitness level was fantastic for us and that second level of play was really pushing the play and pushing the envelope. That comes from being at home and at a place that you’re learning to make your own.”
Main believes having a stadium on campus they can call home should make the Bobcats second season in the Big East Conference much easier than the first. She also says that part of the reason Quinnipiac has been able to make a smooth transition to the Big East is because of their out of conference schedule and their ability to play teams like Northeastern so closely.
“Just like playing Boston College last weekend, you put these teams on the schedule because a loss, when it’s a 2-1 loss like this, gives you the confidence to understand you can play with the best so when you get to October our results are coming out the way we want,” Main said.
Quinnipiac will continue to play out of conference games until Sept. 15 and it will continue to use their tough schedule to get ready for what the Big East has to offer.
“I think that (our players) are no longer looking at themselves as the under dog,” she said. “That’s why we compete as we have been doing for a whole year. If I look back to the end of September until now every game is by one and you’re not in these blowout games.”
Quinnipiac not only gets to enjoy its new home turf a little longer, but gets the chance to win its first game of the season in Hamden.
The Bobcats play host to Holy Cross on Sunday.
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