Record win for Bobcat coach: Seeley gets 200th

Record win for Bobcat coach: Seeley gets 200^th

By Brian Farrell, QBSN Staff Writer

Courtesy: quinnipiacbobcats.com

Sometimes a win is not just a win. On Saturday evening, a non-conference game against Robert Morris may have seemed to be just another win for anyone outside the shadow of the Sleeping Giant.

The win marked the ninth of the season for the Bobcats and their third in a row. The win kept the Nutmeg Championship in Connecticut and more importantly, kept it in Hamden. It was the program’s 100^th win and for head coach Rick Seeley it was his 200^th career win.

Quinnipiac players chanted 'speech' to Seeley after the game, who replied with a sarcastic smile before giving his team what they were asking for.

“Well I had no idea,” Seeley said still smiling. “I guess these things are important at the end of your career, but what makes it great right now and you know that I am tough, and you know that I love this group, and I’m so glad I get to share it with you guys.”

After the game in true humble fashion, Seeley continued to try to downplay the importance of the record.

“It’s a number…but the only great thing about it is that I got to share it with this team,” he said.

This team is the first in which the entire roster contained Seeley recruits.

“Being a part of Coach's 200th win milestone is something none of us probably ever thought about happening,” senior captain Jordan Elkins said. “Our class started at Quinnipiac the same year Coach Seeley and his staff did so we naturally have a special connection, and I was proud to be able to help Coach achieve a goal like he is always helping us.”

Before coaching at Quinnipiac, Seeley compiled a 54-16-4 record with Manhattanville and a trip to the NCAA Division III finals in 2001-2002. That same season Manhattanville went undefeated in conference play.

At Clarkson University, his Golden Knights produced a 93-67-18 record. With Seeley at the helm, Clarkson reached the ECAC playoffs each year they were eligible. Year in and year out Seeley recruited some of the top players in North America, most notably in the Ontario region. His success on the college level with Clarkson and now Quinnipiac has earned him a high status in the Ontario region.

What is most impressive about the 200 wins are the teams Seeley won with. In his first seasons at Manhattanville and Clarkson, the teams were not yet active. His second season with those teams they were independent of any leagues. When he arrived at Quinnipiac, the Bobcats had won just five games the previous season and averaged a mere six wins in the previous seven seasons.

At each university he coached at it took just two seasons before his squads would win 20 plus games.

The Bobcats will look to add to their win total as they travel to Brown and Yale this weekend. This weekend’s games also hold more water as the Bobcats are back in the national ranking discussions after receiving a vote in yesterday’s poll.