The Quinnipiac University Bobcats started off their weekend slate of matches strong as they swept Saint Peters University and improved to 8-1 in the MAAC Conference. Quinnipiac also improved their home record to a perfect 4-0 where they also haven’t lost a single set.
The Bobcats had a lot of momentum going into this game, being that they just swept Manhattan this past Thursday. The same could not be said for Saint Peters. The Peacocks came into today’s match with a 0-20 record on their season and were in the midst of a 12-game losing streak.
The first two sets saw Quinnipiac remain in relative control throughout, with the Bobcats immediately jumping out to a 3-0 lead off of three straight aces by sophomore setter Damla Gunes. The Bobcats would never surrender the lead in the first set. Quinnipiac laid down a barrage of kills on the Peacocks, mainly from the combination of junior opposite Alexandra Tennon, first-year outside hitter Leilani – Kai Giusta and sophomore outside hitter Yagmur Gunes.
The second set played out very similarly, however, there was a bit of sloppiness on Quinnipiac’s end, particularly with service and attack errors. Up to that point in the match, the Bobcats had committed five service errors and four attack errors respectively.
This was a piece of the game coach Kyle Robinson expressed frustration with afterward.
“I just think were overthinking it a little bit too much right now. We’re not as disciplined as we need to be,” Robinson said. “The details matter, we sweat the small stuff. I don’t think we’re sweating it enough. I think some of our servers aren’t getting back there and paying attention to their rhythm, the momentum of the game, the objective of what’s going on, that tactics and strategy of what they should be doing, and their heads are spinning a little bit too much.”
Robinson talked about having somewhat of a “greedy” coaching approach, trying to always get more out of his players and look for improvements.
In the third set, things would not start off well for the Bobcats as they fell behind 2-0 off a kill from Peacocks outside hitter Syklee Nelson and another attack error from Tennon for the Bobcats.
Nerves really began to creep into the crowd when the Peacocks served the Bobcats a taste of their own medicine with three straight aces by first-year setter Savina Trujillo, eerily similar to Quinnipiac’s first set, taking an 8-5 lead early. The Bobcats would then counter with five straight kills, four from the Gunes sisters and one from Giusta. Despite multiple lead changes, the Bobcats eventually pulled away to seal the sweep.
Yagmur Gunes said after the game it took a mental refresh from the team to shake off the late struggles.
“It was all about just resetting our minds and getting back into the game,” Gunes said. “We dominated the other team basically.”
Coach Robinson also spoke about the impact of playing at Burt Kahn Court and how that elevates the team.
“It feels like home. It feels like its our place,” Robinson said. “We love our crowd. We love our Bobcat and Quinnipiac community, so when we have people come out and show their love it means alot.”
For one Bobcat, the feeling of home became even more real this weekend. Leilani-Kai Giusta’s family surprised her by flying in all the way from Hawaii, just to see her weekend matches.
“It’s such a special experience,” Giusta said. “I knew my mom and my sister were coming about like two weeks ago and then my Auntie just told me like two days ago she was planning on coming up. My dad surprised us. He didn’t tell nobody, not even my mom, he just impulsively booked a flight two days before.”
There’s certainly a lot to smile about after this win as the Bobcats look to keep the smiles coming on Sunday when they take on Rider at 1 p.m.
