Quinnipiac Releases Nonconference Schedule

With Ike Azotam gone and Ousmane Drame's health a concern, Zaid Hearst becomes an even larger figure for Quinnipiac as Bobcats enter second season in MAAC. (Photo courtesy of the Quinnipiac Bobcats Sports Network)

One could not have asked for a better debut for Quinnipiac in the Metro Atlantic Athletic conference, all things considered. Joining the MAAC after claiming the Northeast Conference as its residence through all of its Division I tenure until July 2013, the Bobcats finished third in their new league, winning three of four games against regular season champion Iona and postseason champion Manhattan before falling to the Jaspers in the semifinals of the MAAC tournament and reaching the CollegeInsider.com tournament.

Looking for an encore after losing rugged senior forward Ike Azotam to graduation, head coach Tom Moore; whose game management improved "exponentially" according to Q30 Sports anchor Jon Alba when he sat down with us to discuss the season on the whole, today released Quinnipiac's nonconference schedule, a slate of nine games featuring all but two at the aesthetically pleasing TD Bank Sports Center in Hamden.

"The Bank" is this year's site of the annual Connecticut 6 tripleheader, in which the Bobcats will once again commence their season when they tip off against Yale on November 14 in a rematch of Quinnipiac's season-ending loss to their neighbors in New Haven. Four days later, Atlantic 10 foe La Salle comes to Hamden to return the favor from a game contested last season in Philadelphia during ESPN's 24-hour Tip-Off Marathon. The season-opening homestand is interrupted on November 22 with a journey to Albany to take on Will Brown and the reigning America East champion Great Danes, but the Bobcats will not be away from home long, returning to the Nutmeg State for contests with in-state rival Hartford (November 25) and Vermont (November 30) that will take Moore's team into the start of MAAC play during the opening weekend in December.

Following two conference tilts, Quinnipiac again hits the road on December 14 to meet Boston University prior to each of their final three non-league skirmishes taking place on their home court. Lehigh (December 18) starts the trio of affairs, with Oregon State (December 21) and Maine (December 29) rounding out the first portion of the Bobcats' ledger.

***Click here for Quinnipiac's nonconference schedule release, featuring quotes from head coach Tom Moore, and click here to view Q30 Sports' archives.***