ALLENTOWN, PA – The Quinnipiac men’s ice hockey team saw their season come to an end with a 4-1 loss to the UConn Huskies in the NCAA Regional Semifinals.
The Bobcats, who hold the nation’s longest active streak of six consecutive NCAA Division I tournament appearances, fail to reach a regional final game for the first time since 2021.
The Huskies, appearing in their first NCAA tournament in program history, move on to face the fourth-seed Penn State Nittany Lions in the regional final on Sunday.
The opening frame spelled disaster for the navy and gold, surrendering both of the first two goals of the game.
Graduate forward Hugh Larkin found the back of the net first, followed by a goal off a turnover from first-year forward Ethan Gardula six minutes later.
The result, Bobcats to the locker room in a 2-0 deficit with just four shots on goal to show for it.
After the intermission, the Bobcats looked to claw their way back to even the score.
On a two-on-one rush halfway through the middle period, sophomore forward Mason Marcellus made a move around the Husky defenseman before dropping it off for junior winger Jeremy Wilmer to give the Bobcats life.
Wilmer ends the season with a team-leading 40 points after the Bobcats’ lone tally, while Marcellus finished second with 38, leading the team in assists with 28 on the year.
Just as the momentum was shifting towards the Quinnipiac side, UConn junior forward Tristan Fraiser had a bouncing puck fall right to his stick in front, where he made no mistake.
The 3-1 lead would be one the Huskies held for the remainder of the period, giving Quinnipiac head coach Rand Pecknold’s team just 20 minutes to save their season.
In the third, the Bobcats would do everything they could find the back of the net, totaling a game-high 11 shots on goal in the final frame.
Despite the great opportunities and pressure, they couldn’t get one past first-year netminder Callum Tung.
Tung was stellar in goal for UConn, stopping 21 of the 22 shots he faced in the win.
After sophomore forward Joey Muldowney sealed the deal with an empty net goal from his own end of the ice in the dying minutes, reality started to settle in for the Bobcats.
“A great year for us,” Pecknold said. “I thought this would be a rebuild or a reload year, but we were better.”
With several seniors and graduate students on the roster, along with the transfer portal looming ahead, the future is unknown for the Quinnipiac men’s ice hockey team.
“It’s just every day. Classes together, working out together, practices,” said sophomore forward Andon Cerbone. “We’re family at this point.”
If one thing is for certain, the Bobcats will be back, and their quest for success continues.
