Bridgewater State and Worcester State are moving on to the semifinal round of the MASCAC Women's Basketball Tournament after defeating their quarterfinal opponents on Tuesday.

No. 4 Bridgewater State 81, No. 5 Salem State 61      Box Score

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – Sophomore guard Hannah Dziadyk (Wakefield, Mass.) tallied 20 points and a career-high nine rebounds in 25 minutes off the bench to lead fourth-seeded Bridgewater State University to an 81-61 victory over #5 Salem State University in the quarterfinal round of the 2020 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Women's Basketball Tournament on Tuesday night at the Tinsley Center.

With the win, Bridgewater State advances to the MASCAC Tournament semifinal round. The Bears (11-15) will travel to Framingham State University on Thursday night to take on the top-seeded Rams at six. Salem State ends the season with an overall record of 6-19.

Dziadyk knocked down 6 of 10 three-pointers and three of her game-best nine boards came off the offensive glass. She also registered three assists and a steal.

Junior center Destiny Fitzgerald (Medford, Mass.) added 16 points, eight rebounds (three offensive) and two blocked shots for the Bears, while senior guard Nicole Bostick (East Taunton, Mass.) notched 14 points, four caroms and three assists. Sophomore guard Olivia Dziadyk (Wakefield, Mass.) checked in with ten points, three rebounds and a game-best seven assists.

Senior guard Courtney Paschal (Waltham, Mass.) paced Salem State with a game-high 23 points to go along with five rebounds and two steals. Freshman forward Liz Zaiter (Peabody, Mass.) and sophomore forward Nicole Freddo (Marblehead, Mass.) added ten points apiece for the Vikings. Zaiter also pulled down a team-best eight rebounds (four offensive).

The Bears tallied the first 11 points of the contest as they held the Vikings scoreless for over 5 ½ minutes. Bostick and Fitzgerald notched four points apiece during the run while Hannah Dziadyk knocked down a three-pointer. Bridgewater led 22-10 after one and got up by as many as 15 points (25-10) early in the second quarter following a Bostick trifecta. Salem used a 9-2 run to close out the period to turn a 14-point deficit (29-15) into a 31-24 game at the break.

Bostick scored 12 points in the first half to lead all players, while Freddo tallied eight points in nine minutes off the bench for Salem State. The Bears shot 39% (12-31) over the first two quarters including 3-for-14 (21%) from behind the arc. The Vikings connected on just 28% (9-32) of their first-half field goal attempts and went 1-for-10 (10%) from three-point range.

Salem pulled to within five (40-35) with 5:13 remaining in the third quarter following a traditional three-point play by junior forward Katie Wallace (Peabody, Mass.). The Bears, however, put the game out of reach with a 19-1 run highlighted by a trio of Hannah Dziadyk three-pointers. All told, Dziadyk scored 12 points on four three-pointers during the surge.

Bridgewater maintained at least an 18-point advantage the rest of the way and got up by as many as 26 points (71-45) in the final period.

The Bears converted 7 of 12 (58%) three-point field goals in the second half with Dziadyk going 5-for-5 from behind the arc. Bridgewater shot 49% (29-59) from the floor for the game and finished 13-for-18 (72%) at the free throw line.

Salem shot just 31% (22-72) on the evening. The Vikings went 6-for-22 (27%) from three-point range and 11-for-17 (65%) at the charity stripe.

No. 3 Worcester State 73, No. 6 Fitchburg State 44        Box Score

WORCESTER, Mass. - The Worcester State University women's basketball team defeated Fitchburg State University 73-44 Tuesday evening in the Quarterfinals of the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament at John P. Brissette Court. 

With the win, Worcester State improves to 18-8 overall on the season and advances to the MASCAC Semifinals. The third-seeded Lancers will travel to #2 Westfield State on Thursday evening for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff in a rematch of last season's MASCAC Championship game. Fitchburg State sees its season come to a close at 6-20.

The Lancers came out of the gate strong and never looked back en route to the victory. Led off by a first possession triple by freshman Erin Gallella (Tewksbury, Mass.), the hosts opened the contest on a 12-2 run in the first four minutes of the game. By the end of the quarter, the Lancers led 18-7, with Gallella and senior Mya Mosley (Worcester, Mass.) each leading the way with eight points.

Worcester State continued to pull away in the second quarter to take a 37-20 lead into the locker room. Seven different Lancers recorded at least one basket in the quarter to balance out the attack.

In the third, Worcester State again dominated the Falcons, outscoring the visitors 20-8 and taking a 57-28 lead to the fourth. Mosley again was Worcester State's leading scorer in the quarter, recording seven points in just four minutes of action.

The teams each scored 16 points in the fourth as Worcester State's starters went to the bench as Worcester State sealed the victory. Senior Sam Ellis (Grafton, Mass.) was on fire in the quarter, hitting a pair of threes to lead all players with eight points.

Mosley ended the night as the game's leading scorer, recording 19 points in the victory. Ellis had 11 points in just 13 minutes, while Gallella put in 10 points. Senior Catherine Sweeney (Lowell, Mass.) was huge on both ends of the floor for Worcester State with 16 rebounds to go along with six points and six assists. In all, 11 Lancers scored points for Worcester State on the evening.

Fitchburg State was led by senior Angelina Marazzi. The senior recorded 12 points for the visitors.

Releases courtesy of Bridgewater State and Worcester State Sports Information