WESTFIELD, Mass. – Led by 11 kills from tournament MVP junior middle blocker Julia Bartiet (Cheshire, Conn.), Westfield State University women's volleyball won the 2022 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference championship game 3-1 over Worcester State University at the Woodward Center on Saturday afternoon.
Westfield won by set scores of 25-22, 25-20, 20-25, and 25-22 in the final set, when Westfield rallied from down 22-19, winning the final six points of the match to close out the Lancers for the title.
Westfield, 13-11 overall, earns the MASCAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III tournament with the win. The Owls won their sixth conference tournament crown and will make their sixth NCAA appearance.
Owls' head coach Fred Glanville called time out in the fourth set with the Owls down 22-19. The Owls won the next point after a sustained rally, and then a Lancers hitting error brought the match to 22-21. Westfield tied the game at 22-22 all on a Sarah Bingham (Reno, Nev.) block. A Bingham kill ultimately sealed the win for the Owls.
Senior captain Shawna Crowley (Billerica, Mass.) led the Owls with 15 kills and added 14 digs. Twin sister Ashley Crowley (Billerica, Mass.) added 10 kills and 14 digs.
Bartiet's 11 kills today gave her 21 in the Owls two tournament games as she evolved into a key factor on the Owls' front line as the season progressed. Bingham added 10 kills and four blocks, and first-year libero Allie Hill (St. Clair Shores, Mich.) came up with a team high 20 digs.
Westfield got off to a fast start in the first set as Shawna Crowley powered a kill to set the tone on the opening point, then Ashley added a tip kill to set the Owls up for an early lead which the held throughout the set.
In the set, Westfield led 10-6 before Worcester battled back to tie the set at 16-all, and the Owls eased away to close out the set.
In the third set, Worcester led 16-14, then got three straight kills from Cassidy D'Esposito (Medford, N.Y.), Erin Gaffney (Worcester, Mass. / Tech) and Gabby Albergini (Northboro, Mass.) to extend the lead to 19-14 and held the Owls off.
The momentum appeared to be swinging the Lancers' way in the fourth set, as Worcester won three straight points before the critical timeout. Westfield's 6-0 run was the biggest of the match by either side as the two teams largely traded points throughout.
Worcester State's season comes to a close with an 8-22 overall record. The fourth-seeded Lancers turned a 5-3 conference record into a semifinal round upset of top seed Framingham State, giving the second-seeded Owls a chance to host the title game.
The Lancers were today by 12 kills from Gaffney, and nine each from Angela Colonis (Waterford, Conn.) and Camryn Burgio (Quincy, Mass.). Colonis turned in a strong all-around performance with 17 digs and 21 assists, while Burgio led with 22 digs.
Westfield will find it's opponent and destination in the NCAA Tournament on Monday, November 7 in an NCAA.com selection show schedule to start at 1:30 p.m.
The Owls will be making their second appearance in the last three season, as they won a MASCAC title in 2019 before missing the 2020 season due to the pandemic.