WESTFIELD, Mass. – Framingham State got the overtime game-winning goal from Molly Lanier and Rams goalkeeper Isabella DiMare made 16 saves to propel the Rams to a 15-14 win over Westfield State, securing the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference regular season title for the Rams.
Lanier worked off a slip screen near the top of the fan and slung a left-handed bounce shot past Owls netminder Kara Banagan for the winning goal with just 20 seconds left in the first overtime period.
The goal capped a battle fit for the top two teams in the league, as Framingham finishes league play with a perfect 6-0 record in the MASCAC, and improves to 13-3 overall. Westfield is now 10-7 and 5-1 in the league. Framingham will be the top seed in next week's MASCAC tournament, with the Owls drawing the #2 seed. Westfield will host a semifinal round playoff game on Thursday at 7:00 p.m.
Rachel Erickson led Framingham with five goals and an assist, Lanier added four goals , and Hannah Guerin tallied three goals and three assists.
Westfield was led by four goals from Kylie Buchanan, three goals and an assist from Kiely Hafensteiner, and three goals each from Mykenzie Black and Megan Bailey. Emma Prattson added a goal and three assists. Banagan made 10 saves in goal.
The game featured five lead changes and six ties. Westfield put 30 shots on goal to the Rams 25, but DiMare was the difference maker in the game.
Framingham jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first 7:07 of the game as DeMare stymied the Owls early, saving the first four shots she faced, including two from point-blank range on Westfield counter-attacks.
Westfield's Banagan saved a free position shot from Rams' leading scorer Hannah Gurein with 6:45 left in first quarter to swing momentum, McKezie Black earned a free position for the Owls and she converted with a low shot from the top of the fan to get the Owls on the board and trim the lead to 3-1 with 6:10 left in the quarter.
Owls tied the game 4-4 after Paige Jelliffe forced a turnover in the Framingham offensive end. Jelliffe carried the ball to midfield before finding Emma Prattson with a long lead pass, and Prattson found Kiely Hafensteiner on the left side of the fan for a bounce-shot goal in the closing seconds of the first quarter.
After a Banagan save, Lindsey Bohenko cleared the ball end to end, finding Kylie Buchanan in the middle of the fan for a wicked shot and a 5-4 Owls lead with 12:04 left in the second quarter.
Rachel Erickson drove to the cage from the left side of the fan and tied the game 5-5 with 9:19 left in the first half.
Up 8-6 late in the first half, but having already faced 20 owls' shots to 12 of their own, Framingham began to rag time off the clock on each possession, holding the ball and running 30-40 seconds off the shot clock before getting into offense. The Rams led 9-6 at the half.
Westfield used a 3-0 run in the first 4:48 of the second half to tie the game, when Emma Prattson fed Megan Bailey from behind the cage.
The Owls grabbed a 10-9 lead with 9:22 left in the third quarter when Kiely Hafensteiner rolled the crease and scored.
Erickson tied the game at 10 with a free position goal.
Black put the Owls up 11-10 with a free position shot with 2:13 left in the third, snapping a steak of eight straight free positions that Westfield could not convert into a goal.
Regan Fein netted a leaping goal from the left side for the Rams to tie 11-all with 1:27 left in the third.
Bailey scored off an assist from Prattson with 16 seconds left in the third, to put the Owls ahead 12-11 after three periods.
Westfield finally was able to extend to a two goal lead 1:08 into the fourth quarter when Lindsey Bohenko fed Buchanan in the middle of the fan for the goal in a man-up situation after Framingham was carded for an offsides call with 2.9 seconds left in the third quarter.
Guerin tied the game at 13-all with a free position tally with 11:33 left.
Black scored free position, extra attacker goal put Westfield up 14-13 with 8:08 left in regulation.
Guerin scored a free position shot from the top of the fan with 5:14 left to play in regulation, tying the game at 14-all and forcing the overtime period.
Westfield had won 22 straight conference regular season games dating back to the March 27, 2021 season when their last loss came at Framingham in a 13-9 defeat in a game played under pandemic protocols.
The loss spoiled a senior night celebration for the Owls, who recognized Banagan, Bohenko, Hafensteiner, Jelliffe, Olivia Hadla, Natalie DeMaio, Victoria Paine and Lindsey Panneton and their families in a pregame ceremony.