Photo courtesy Quinnipiac Athletics
By: Sierra Goodwill
A dominating performance by a Quinnipiac threesome led the Bobcats (10-3, 7-0 MAAC) to defeat the Canisius Golden Knights (4-8, 3-4 MAAC) 13-7 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference semifinals. The Bobcats now have the opportunity for an NCAA Tournament appearance and potential national ranking with one more victory.
Senior attack Ryan Keenan, freshman midfielder Foster Cuomo, and junior goalkeeper Jack Brust were the standouts.
The two offensive threats combined for 12 points, nine of which were Bobcat goals. Cuomo’s four goals and two assists combined for six points, a career high.
Head coach Eric Fekete knew the freshman’s capabilities and was pleased that it finally transferred into a game, let alone on the biggest stage in his young career.
“We don’t rely on one guy to score,” Fekete said. “The ball just tends to gravitate towards the people with the hot hand on any given day. Sometimes it’s Feldman, some days its Carchietta, but we’ve been waiting for Foster to go off. He’s been so close to exploding.”
Keenan added five goals and an assist to the plethora of Quinnipiac offense. The senior extended his streak of hat tricks to four games, making him instrumental in the Bobcat’s seven-game win streak.
Fekete said “he’s in the golden years of his career right now,” as he’s trying to lead Quinnipiac men’s lacrosse into unchartered territory.
Between the pipes, Brust was a brick wall for the Bobcats. The redshirt junior checked a season high 18 saves, falling just one short of his career best that he set last year in the MAAC Championship.
“He’s one of the best goalies in the county,” Fekete said. “He is the inspiration. He is the leader of the defense. The better he gets during the game, the more we begin to branch out and the more aggressive our defense gets.”
“It’s unreal. He’s been incredible all year,” Keenan said. “When you can rely on a guy like that to make saves, you can be a lot more confident on the other end.”
Besides Thursday’s tremendous trio, the power of runs also proved its importance in advancing Quinnipiac to the Championship Game on Saturday at Noon.
A 6-1 run in the first half gave the Bobcats the cushion it needed to hold off a 4-1 Canisius start to the third quarter. One Golden Knight’s goal was courtesy of the Bobcats, following a misplay at the feet of Brust.
“The bobble was just a miscue,” the skipper said. “We’re very young and I think the pressure of the playoff game made us do things we don’t normally do, or haven’t done.”
Brust said the team motto, “one stop at a time,” helped him regain focus.
“I just took a deep breath and said, ‘hey, let’s get this next one,’ and then build on that. That mindset let us get back into the game (to) close the door on them.”
Quinnipiac responded with a 4-0 run to seal the deal, giving it the most wins in a season since 2001.
Following Quinnipiac’s win, Thomas Rago scored with 9.3 seconds left to nudge No. 2 seed Marist past No. 3 seed Monmouth, to send the Red Foxes to their third straight MAAC final.
A year ago, Quinnipiac fell to Marist in the title game, 16-14.
But, the difference this year? The location.
“The routine of being able to be at home, eat a regular pregame meal, and be here at practice (Friday) is huge,” Fekete said.
“Obviously we are happy to be in this position, but we know that it’s not done yet,” Brust said. “We have to keep working hard and see what we can do.
