Bridgewater State and Worcester State Advance to MASCAC Women's Soccer Championship
After two overtime thrillers on Friday night, Bridgewater State and Worcester State advance to the MASCAC Women's Soccer Championship game on Sunday at Worcester State.
After two overtime thrillers on Friday night, Bridgewater State and Worcester State advance to the MASCAC Women's Soccer Championship game on Sunday at Worcester State.
#4 Bridgewater State 1, #1 Westfield State 0 2 OT Box Score
WESTFIELD, Mass. – Senior forward Alana Vincent (Taunton, Mass.) scored with 1:28 remaining in the second overtime period to lift fourth-seeded Bridgewater State University to a 1-0 double overtime victory over #1 seed Westfield State University in the semifinal round of the 2019 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC ) Women's Soccer Tournament on Friday night at Alumni Field.
With the win, Bridgewater State advances to the MASCAC title game for the first time since 2016 and 12th time in program history. The Bears (12-8) will travel to Worcester State University on Sunday afternoon to take on the third-seeded Lancers at noon. Worcester State defeated #2 Salem State University in the other semifinal matchup, 3-2, in overtime. Westfield State ends the 2019 season with an overall record of 11-6-1.
Vincent tucked a shot inside the left post to provide the game-ending heroics off a nice feed from senior forward Emma Sanders (Seekonk, Mass.). After running on to a pass from Vincent to the right of the 18, Sanders dribbled around two defenders and slid a centering pass back to Vincent who beat the Westfield keeper from 12 yards out.
The Bears earned the hard-fought win despite being outshot in the game, 27-13.
BSU senior goalkeeper Kellie Souza (Wilmington, Mass.) turned aside seven shots to record her 12th win of the season and seventh shutout.
Westfield's best scoring opportunity in overtime came in the second session when sophomore midfielder Jenn Rennich (Bedford, Mass.) rang the crossbar from just inside the 18.
Freshman netminder Lauryn Davis (Templeton, Mass.) made four saves in the setback for the Owls.
#3 Worcester State 3, #2 Salem State 2 OT Box Score
SALEM, Mass. - Junior Megan Gurlitz (Auburn, Mass.) scored the game-winning goal 4:36 into the first overtime period Friday night, as the third-seeded Worcester State University women's soccer team upset second-seeded Salem State 3-2 in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Semifinal at Alumni Field.
With the win, the Lancers improve to 10-7-2 overall on the season and advance to the MASCAC Championship on Sunday. The Lancers will host #4 Bridgewater State, who upset Westfield State 1-0 in double overtime in other MASCAC Semifinal action Friday evening. Kickoff from Coughlin Field is scheduled for 12 p.m. on Sunday.
Worcester State junior Ali Maldonado (Rutland, Mass.) scored the only goal of the first half, depositing a beautiful curling free kick from distance in the 34th minute. The Lancers would carry the 1-0 advantage into the half.
Salem tied the score up with a headed tally from Katie Brown in the 53rd minute, but the tie would be shortlived as senior Tsara LeBlanc (Gardner, Mass.) chipped one past the Viking goalkeeper just 2:12 later. Freshman Haley Ferrin (North Attleboro, Mass.) earned an assist on LeBlanc's goal.
Just over three and a half minutes later, Salem State again evened the score, this time on an unassisted Taylor Capozzi goal, which would eventually force overtime.
On the only shot of extra time, Gurlitz punched Worcester's ticket to the MASCAC Final. After receiving a feed from junior Madison Rotti (Rutland, Mass.) just outside the top of the 18-yard box, Gurlitz did a 360-degree spun and fired a shot that slipped through the fingers of Salem's goalkeeper and into the back of the net for the clincher.
Worcester State goalkeeper Ashley Spellman got the win for the Lancers, turning aside five shots, four of which in the second half.
Releases courtesy of Bridgewater State and Worcester State Sports Information