Worcester State Earns Top Seed in 2023 MASCAC Field Hockey Tournament
The Worcester State Lancers earn the top seed in the first-ever MASCAC Field Hockey Tournament which begins on Wednesday, November 1 with the quarterfinal round of games.
The Worcester State Lancers earn the top seed in the first-ever MASCAC Field Hockey Tournament which begins on Wednesday, November 1 with the quarterfinal round of games.
The quarterfinals begin on Wednesday with #3 Framingham State hosting #6 Bridgewater State while #4 Salem State hosts #5 Fitchburg State both at 7 pm. The highest remaining seed with play #2 Westfield State in the semifinals on Friday, Nov. 3 at 3:30 pm while top seed Worcester State will face the lowest remaining seed at 6 pm.
The semifinal winners will then meet on Sunday, Nov. 5 at the highest remaining seed for the MASCAC Championship and the automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
The Lancers finished 9-1 at the end of the conference season. Leading the way is Grace Adams who leads the conference in goals with 16 and second in assists with six for a league-leading 38 points. She also collected four game-winning goals which is the most in the MASCAC at the end of the regular season.
Earning the other first round bye is Westfield State with an 8-2 conference record. In goal for the Owls is Emma Gniadek who closed out the regular season second in goals against (17), goals against average (1.50) and save percentage (.779). She also made 60 saves and collected five wins this season.
Framingham State grabbed the third seed and hosting duties after going 5-5 during the league slate of games. In her first year with the Rams, Ashley Malmquist recorded 12 goals and six assists for 30 points along with 66 shots, all second-best in the MASCAC. She also helped the team to a victory with one game-winning goal.
Securing the final host responsibilities is Salem State with the fourth seed. The Vikings had four wins in conference play. Rookie goalie Izzy Mosley had a solid regular season for the team, registering a league-leading 152 saves along with a 2.85 GAA, .768 save percentage and six wins on the season.
Closing out this year's tournament field are Fitchburg State with the fifth seed and Bridgewater State with the sixth seed. The Falcons had three MASCAC wins this season and were led by goalie Jenna Morse who stopped the second-most shots in the conference with 144 while also earning four wins, a 2.78 GAA and .766 save percentage. For the Bears, Lexi James tallied 21 points on nine goals and three assists over her 15 games of action.