There might still be tons of snow on the ground, but we’ve just had our first sign that spring is around the corner; NCAA Opening Day. 

Quinnipiac opened its’ 2025 campaign with a pair of double-headers down south, against the mighty No. 8 Georgia Bulldogs and the UNC Wilmington Seahawks. 

Safe to say it was a rusty first day for Quinnipiac. The Bobcats got pummelled 9-1 by the Bulldogs Friday morning, then 12-1 by the Seahawks in the first day’s nightcap. 

But Saturday’s slate was a much better showing. Quinnipiac held a one-run lead over Georgia entering the sixth before the Bulldogs got back on track, winning 7-4. The Bobcats took that energy into the getaway game, battling UNCW back and forth into extras before erupting for five runs in the 10th, ending the weekend with a 10-6 win.

Here’s what stood out the most this weekend: 

PITCHING ROTATION: 

The rotation was one of the biggest question marks about this team entering the opening weekend. De facto ace Mason Ulsh announced in early February that he would miss the season with an elbow injury. So who would head coach John Delaney entrust with starting roles? 

Josh LaJoie, Nick Balcom, Matt Alduino and Mike Poncini all got starts this week for Quinnipiac. Delaney also opted to go with a long relief option rather than burn multiple relievers per game, as grad student Jack Kabel, first-year Sam Wright and junior Andrew Rubayo all pitched over three innings in their appearances. 

While LaJoie struggled in his outing (just 2.1 innings, five walks and six earned runs vs. Georgia), Balcom, Poncini and Alduino looked really solid. Balcom, who transferred in from Div. II AIC, went five innings on Friday vs. UNCW, striking out four and only allowing two earned runs. 

As for Poncini and Alduino, both are getting stretched out as starters after starting their college careers out of the bullpen. Poncini didn’t pitch last year after recovering from Tommy John, but he did reasonably well on Saturday, going three innings and only allowing two runs. Alduino, who was the Bobcats’ go-to closer last year, went four innings, giving up three. 

All these pitchers could be rotational options for the Bobcats, especially during heavier stretches of the season down the line. Quinnipiac is a program that’s always relied on strength in numbers in the bullpen. 

“We can’t be a four-pitcher program. That’s not going to work,” Delaney said last season. “From a guy out of the bullpen, the ask is to get three quality outs, give us one quality inning, and then pass it along”

We’ll get better insight into the rotation during the Bobcats’ first traditional three-game series of the season this weekend at Radford. Here’s what the rotation may look like between starters and long relievers as the season progresses: 

SP1: Nick Balcom

SP2: Mike Poncini

SP3: Matt Alduino

SP4/LR1: Josh LaJoie

SP5/LR2: Jack Kabel

LR3: Andrew Rubayo

LR4: Sam Wright

As for closer options, with Alduino moving to the rotation, relievers like Jack Gannon, J.C. Franconere, Ryan O’Connell and Griffin Seibel could all be options. Expect it to be a closer-by-committee situation though. 

LINEUP CHOICES: 

The Bobcats are returning about half of their lineup from last season but Delaney has shifted his defense around a bit this season. For the returners, Kyle Garbowski has shifted from shortstop to first base as his primary position and C.J. Willis has shifted from first base to right field. It’s also looking like Delaney plans to platoon Christian Smith with Maryland transfer Cole Constable at catcher and have Smith at DH when Constable catches.

Transfer adds Alex Irizarry and Johnny Knox have started every game so far at shortstop and second base respectively, while Sebastian Mueller returned to third base. Mueller made the switch across the diamond last season, but only played 11 games due to injury.

If this weekend was any indication, the outfield defense has the potential to be among the MAAC’s best. Sean McCulloch, Luke Ziesloft and Gabe Wright all made stellar catches across the weekend’s four games. Wright’s five-star catch even graced the Sports Center Top 10 on Sunday, coming in at No. 3. 

As for the everyday batting order, here’s how it may look going forward: 

1: Knox

2: Garbowski

3: Mueller

4: Willis

5: Irizarry

6: Smith

7: McCulloch

8: Constable

9: Wright

McCulloch has been the guy who’s shifted around the order the most. The grad transfer from Div. III Susquehanna batted second against UNCW on Friday, eighth against Georgia on Saturday and then led off in the getaway game. He seems like a guy who’s comfortable hitting out of any spot in the lineup and gives Quinnipiac flexibility depending on the pitching matchup. Key backups like outfielder James Marino and catcher Jack Bryan will likely get spot starts as needed throughout the season. Each made one start this weekend. 

HOW GOOD ARE THEY REALLY? 

Friday and Saturday were night and day differences. Nothing went Quinnipiac’s way in the first two games on Friday, but Saturday’s slate proved this team can be competitive. They led No. 8 Georgia by a run through six and then held on against UNCW, the CAA favorites. Their killer has been ball four. Bobcat pitchers walked 31 batters over the four games, putting them in holes they just couldn’t dig out of. Even the win against UNCW would have been won in regulation if not for – you guessed it –  two walks and a hit batter in the bottom of the ninth. The pitching is going to be Quinnipiac’s biggest variable this season. If it’s reliable, they’ll be pretty good. But it has the potential to be the Bobcats’ weakest link and could capsize the team when the bats go cold.

Quinnipiac was picked fourth in the MAAC preseason poll and if everything clicks, they have a shot to be a dark horse contender for their first conference championship since 2017. They’ve got two more road non-conference series before returning home on March 7 for the MAAC opener against Iona.