A Saturday afternoon where the Quinnipiac Bobcats celebrated nine seniors for senior day did not end as well as it started as they fell to the St. Bonaventure Bonnies by a score of 10-8. 

The Bobcats started out strong as they took a 1-0 lead 2:55 into the game as sophomore attack Dylan Donnery took advantage of a man up situation to fire a shot past the goalie. 

The Bonnies preceded to dominate the next 10 minutes of the quarter scoring four unanswered goals, which consisted of a hat trick by senior attack Jackson Rose. 

Three of those goals came with a man up advantage, as the Bonnies were able to take advantage of critical mistakes made by the Bobcats. 

A goal by junior attack John DeLucia with 39 seconds left gave the Bobcats a pulse going into the second quarter. 

The Bonnies were able to keep control throughout the second quarter as they extended their lead to 8-4, led by another hat trick, this one from senior attack Sean Westley. 

The two teams went into the halftime break with that score. 

The Bobcats came out swinging in the second half, as they outscored the Bonnies by a score of 3-1 in the third quarter and got the crowd energized as they went into the fourth quarter trailing 9-7. 

The fourth quarter was a defensive battle as there was only one goal scored by each side.  

The Bobcats, who spent the majority of the fourth only trailing by a goal, were unable to beat the Bonnies senior goalie Brett Dobson, who was on his game all day, making 21 saves. 

“The difference making, I thought was the goaltending,” said Quinnipiac head coach Mason Poli. “I thought our guy, Nick DiMuccio, I thought had a good game, their guy just played a little bit better.” 

The dagger came from junior midfielder Brady Wijbrandts, who with just 2:22 remaining in the game, was able to score on a fast break to give the Bonnies a 10-8 lead, taking the life out of the crowd and the team. 

The seniors, despite playing their last game in Hamden, had left a legacy for the program. 

“This is definitely a special class,” Poli said. “For me, this is my fourth year now as head coach and first class I’ve seen through at the helm. Couldn’t have asked for more from the guys, everything we’ve been through…. I’m proud of those boys.” 

Despite the loss, the Bobcats were led by Donnery, who finished the day with a hat trick of his own. 

The Bobcats will look to try to finish the season on a high note as they take on their biggest rival, Yale, on Tuesday, April 26 at 7 p.m. in New Haven.