WESTFIELD – Westfield State wins their quarterfinal MASCAC tournament game against Salem State in straight sets by scores of 25-23, 25-12 and 25-7 on Wednesday, Nov. 5 in the Woodward Center.
The Owls (13-20; 4-2) advance to the semifinals of the MASCAC tournament while the Vikings’ (5-17; 1-5) season comes to a close.
Salem jumped out to a 14-7 lead in the first set before Westfield stormed back to tie the game at 18. Westfield opened up a two point lead, 21-19, and maintained that gap for the win.
The Owls took control of the next two sets, highlighted by a 15-1 run in the final frame to cap off the victory behind strong serving from freshman standout Victoria Sutphen (Holden, Mass./ Wachusett).
Westfield setter Courtney Ryan (Quincy, Mass./ Quincy) doled out 29 assists to coordinate a balanced offensive attack. Kendyl Haney (Ashland, Mass./ Ashland) picked up a game high 11 kills, Nicole Molleur (Union, Ky./ Tantasqua) added six kills, while Carolyn Cote (Chelmsford, Mass./ Chelmsford) and Sutphen notched five each.
The Vikings offense was led by Emily Peay’s (Lebanon, Conn./ Lyman Memorial) 11 kills and Micaela Forcaciari’s (Plymouth, Mass./ Plymouth South) 19 assists.
Two Vikings recorded double digit digs on the night, Hannah Mullarkey (Salem, Mass./ Salem) had 16 and Alexandra Hopkinson (Reading, Mass./ Reading Memorial) tallied 11.
Sarah Green (Peabody, Mass./ Bishop Fenwick) added six service aces in the win.
Westfield travels to top seeded Framingham State on Saturday, Nov. 8 to play in the semifinals of the MASCAC tournament at 11:00 a.m. The other semifinal will be held at 1:00 p.m. with winners facing off in the championship 30 minutes after the conclusion of the second game.
WSU MEN’S SOCCER OUSTED
FITCHBURG, Mass. – Fitchburg State University blanked Westfield State University, 2-0, in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Quarterfinals on Tuesday evening at Elliot Field.
With the victory, the #3 Falcons will advance to take on the second-seeded Massachusetts Maritime Academy on Friday evening at 7:00 pm in Buzzards Bay.
Sophomore Jared Burns had a one on one opportunity in the 12th minute but was stopped on a point blank shot by Owls net minder Keith Hevey. Less than a minute later however Burns would find the back of the net just inside the box on a turnover by Westfield State to give the hosts an early 1-0 advantage.
Westfield State had their best opportunity of the early stages in the 26th minute when junior Jack Fisher ripped a shot from outside the box off a corner kick by senior Nick Tavares, but was turned away by Falcons keeper Aidan Hanratty.
During the first period the Owls held a 7-4 edge in shots and a staggering 5-1 advantage in corner kicks, with nearly all of them coming in the closing minutes, but were unable to capitalize on the opportunities.
Fitchburg State doubled their lead at the 22:49 mark in the second off the boot of freshman Zachary Young when he picked up a drubbed shot by senior Brett Smith on the far post to give the hosts a 2-0 lead.
Josh Hofer nearly added another for the Green & Gold at the 73rd minute when be broke free from the defense, but was stopped by Hevey on the shot inside the six.
Despite the loss, Westfield State held a 15-14 edge in shots, and 8-4 advantage in corner kicks.
Westfield State concludes their season with a 3-12-3 record, going 2-4-1 in conference play.
The victory ends a 26 year playoff victory drought at home for the Falcons, with their last win coming in 1988 in the MASCAC Championship game.
Fitchburg State will look to avenge their regular season loss at Mass. Maritime on Friday, as they were defeated by the Buccaneers 3-1 on September 26.
