Men's Soccer Bracket

WESTFIELD, Mass. -- The Worcester State Lancers have earned the top seed in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Men’s Soccer Championship, which begins with quarterfinal action on Tuesday, November 5 and continues on with semifinals Friday, November 8 before concluding with the championship game Sunday, November 10.

Worcester State and Framingham State earned a first round bye as the top two regular season finishers. They await the fate of the quarterfinals on Tuesday between third-seeded Bridgewater State who host sixth-seeded Fitchburg State at 2 p.m. and fourth-seeded Massachusetts Maritime who entertain fifth-seeded Salem State at 7 p.m. The winner of Massachusetts Maritime/Salem State will meet with Worcester State on Friday in the semifinals at 7 p.m. Bridgewater State/Fitchburg State winner will face off with Framingham State at 11 a.m. on Friday. Semifinal victors will meet Sunday for the 2013 title at the field of the highest remaining seed.

Worcester State netted 10 wins and a 6-0-1 record to go undefeated in the MASCAC for the first time since 2005. Senior forward Brendan Whitson led the Lancers this season with 12 goals and three assists for 27 points. Teammate Alex Wolfel wasn’t far behind with nine goals and seven assists for 25 points. Goalie Nick Zucco finished with 10 wins, including six shutouts and a goals against average of 1.00.

Framingham State concluded their season with seven wins and a 4-2-1 record for the conference. Bryan Dasilva had four goals and four assists on the season for the Rams while teammate Maycon Malta added his own four goals and an assist. Newcomer Gilvan Mendes finished with three goals and one assist for seven points in his first year for Framingham State.

Bridgewater State finished the regular season with seven victories and a 3-1-3 conference record. Teammates Craig Shadduck and Colin Neri both had six goals and an assist for the Bears. Goalie Matt Bagley finished the regular season with seven wins, including six shutouts and a 1.05 goals against average. Massachusetts Maritime earned their first playoff berth in nine years on the back of a seven win season and 3-3-1 MASCAC record. Asa Mills led the Buccaneers with four goals and an assist for nine points while teammate Connor McInnis netted three goals and an assist of his own for seven points.

Last season’s regular season champion Salem State notched three wins and a conference record of 2-4-1 to claim the fifth seed. Reigning MASCAC Player of the Year Eryk Fernandez paced the Vikings with five goals for 10 points. Senior forward Saimir Zepaj added three goals and an assist for seven points. Fitchburg State rounds out the championship field with six wins and a 1-2-4 conference mark. Goalie Aidan Hanratty was dominate for the Falcons with a 0.50 goals against average and seven shutouts on the year.

Last season, the third-seeded Westfield State Owls upset the top-seeded Salem State Vikings to earn the 2012 Men’s Soccer Championship.