WESTFIELD — The Salem State Vikings have earned the top seed in the 2014 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Men’s Ice Hockey Tournament which begins on Saturday, March 1 with the quarterfinals, followec by the semifinals on Tuesday, March 4 and concluding with the championship game on Saturday, March 8.
Earning a first-round bye for the tournament, Salem State and Plymouth State will find out their opponents after Saturday’s quarterfinals. Third-seeded Westfield State will host sixth-seeded Worcester State at 5:35 p.m. while fourth-seeded Framingham State entertains fifth-seeded Fitchburg State at 7:40 p.m. Saturday.
The Vikings will face the winner of Framingham State/Fitchburg State at 7 p.m. Tuesday while the Panthers host the winner of Westfield State/Worcester State at 6 p.m. in the semifinals. The semifinal winners will meet in the championship game on Saturday, March 8, which will be hosted by the highest remaining seed.
Finishing the year with 11 conference wins and a 14-9-2 overall record, Salem State senior Eric Defelice led the way for the Vikings with 26 points on 11 goals and 15 assists this season. Freshman Alex Minter collected 10 goals and 13 assists for a solid first season with Salem State.
Having an outstanding freshman year for the Panthers, Ian McGilvery helped lead his squad to 11 conference wins and a 13-10-2 overall mark for the season. McGilvery led the conference in points per game (1.20) with his 11 goals and 19 assists. Sophomore Gordon Ceasar was a force in goal with a .946 save percentage and 1.63 goals against average on the year.
Landing the third slot in the tournament, Westfield State ended the year with 10 league victories and a 11-13-1 record overall. Senior Vince Perreault paced the Owls with nine goals and 17 assists while teammate Dalton Jay added 11 goals and 13 assists.
Framingham State secured the fourth seed with eight conference wins and a 10-10-4 overall mark. Junior Ryan McDonald led the Rams with 12 goals and 15 assists while teammate Brendan McCarron wasn’t far behind with 14 goals and nine assists.
Rounding out the tournament field are fifth-seeded Fitchburg State and sixth-seeded Worcester State. The Falcons nabbed eight league wins this season and an 11-13-1 overall record. John Celli led the team in points with 24 on 12 goals and 12 assists.
Grabbing the final seed, the Lancers finished the regular season with five conference wins and a 9-14-1 overall mark. Spreading the offense around, seven players concluded the season with double digits points, including Nathan Stanley who led Worcester State with 16 points on six goals and 10 assists.
During the 2013 tournament, second-seeded UMass Dartmouth upset top seeded Plymouth State 2-1 to capture its first MASCAC conference championship and a trip to the NCAA tournament.
