By Josh Silverman
The Quinnipiac Bobcats beat the Hartford Hawks 71-69 in an overtime thriller on Thursday monrning at the TD Bank SportsCenter. The starting lineup for the Bobcats didn’t include sophomore captain Carly Fabbri or reigning MAAC Rookie of the Week Brittany Martin, but both managed to play 24 and 26 minutes, respectively. They both hit two 3-pointers.
The Bobcats were up 52-40 at the end of the third quarter, but the Hawks were able to rally back. In the 4th quarter the Hawks outscored the Bobcats 20-8. The Hawks even had some chances in the final seconds to put the game away, but were unable to finish. For most of the game, the story was all about Quinnipiac’s defense as the Hawks only had 42 shots through the first three quarters. In the 4th quarter, the Hawks turned on the jets and got up 18 shots.
For Quinnipiac, it attempted 31 3-pointers, but was only able to connect on eight.
“The shots were there and they weren’t contested then that’s what we do,” head coach Tricia Fabbri said. “It wasn’t part of the game plan going in, just a product of Hartford’s defense.”
The Bobcats definitely missed its 2015 MAAC Sixth Player of the Year Maria Napolitano. She was out of Thursday’s game with an ankle injury after playing only four minutes against Army last Sunday. When the game went into overtime, she was seen huddling around and motivating her team. Her veteran play and leadership was absent on the court, but Napolitano did everything she could from the sideline.
“Her voice is a big voice for us and it’s one that everyone needs to hear and it makes us confident,” Fabbri admitted. “It was really important for us to hear her all week in practice and all day on the bench.”
The Bobcats didn’t score any points in the last 3:50 of regulation allowing the Hawks to score eight straight.
At the beginning of overtime, the Hawks struck first. Momentum was shifted back to the Bobcats when Adily Martucci drained a 3-pointer. Morgan Manz followed with a layup. The Bobcats were then able to extend their lead with another score by Martucci.
The Hawks soared back once again. They scored seven points to tie things up at 69. With seconds remaining, freshman Aryn McClure finished an and-1 to put the Bobcats back in front. McClure missed the free-throw. On the other end, the Hawks weren’t able to get the shot off in time.
The Bobcats get their first win of the season after losing to Army. The experience down the stretch was vital, Fabbri said.
“It’s such an intangible and you can never give confidence to anybody. “It’s something that you have to earn and we earned it today.”
Quinnipiac’s next battle is Saturday against Holy Cross at 2 p.m.
