Worcester State Field Hockey Claims Inaugural MASCAC Field Hockey Championship

Worcester, MA- The #1 Worcester State Lancers faced off against the #3 Framingham State Rams in the inaugural MASCAC field hockey championship on John F. Coughlin Memorial Field. Worcester State claimed the season advantage on the Rams with two wins against them in the regular season.

Both Worcester and Framingham were fired up for the game and possession went back and forth with both teams keeping shots at bay for the first half. Framingham, while maintaining possession across the field was unable to secure a shot on cage while Worcester only had 3, managing to find the goal frame. 

Both teams looked confident going into the second half in the evenly matched battle. Framingham had their best chance of the game early when junior Kaylee Beck (Tyngsboro, MA) sent a shot rolling past senior Sam Gastonguay (Ashburnham, MA) that looked to be heading for a Rams 1-0 lead when first year Maddie Parker (Leominster, MA) came out of seemingly nowhere to make a goal line save to stop the ball from going to keep the score at 0-0. The defensive save energized the Lancers squad giving them a jolt of urgency, while Framingham worked to reclaim the near scoring potential that was just missed. 

In the final minutes of the third quarter senior Zoe Athanasopoulos (Hopedale, MA) sent a ball across the front of the net to junior Natalya Morin (Barre, MA) who scored the first goal of the game to put the Lancers up 1-0. As time ticked away for each team, the Lancers continued to put the pressure on in the Rams' defensive end, holding the majority of possession throughout the rest of the game. Worcester State earned a corner in the 53' minute which would lead to their second goal. The ball came into senior Grace Adams (Leominster, MA) who passed it off to first year Megan Goodwin (Keene, NH). Goodwin sent the ball towards the net where a posted up junior Madison Avilla (Westport, MA) was able to finish it off to put the Lancers ahead 2-0. The final seconds of the game would see the Rams attempt to get a goal on the board but the corner would be broken up to secure the first MASCAC Championship for the Lancers.

Parker would earn the game MVP for her vital goal line save for the Lancers, and Worcester State became the first ever MASCAC field hockey champions. The Lancers will now await to hear who their NCAA opponent will be during the NCAA selection show at 10:30pm.