Waldron Leads MASCAC Honor; Named Rookie of the Year

Westfield, Mass. — Bridgewater State’s Kylie Grassi and Framingham State’s Gwendolyn Carpenter  were named the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the  Year while Westfield State’s Octaviana Williams was tabbed as Defensive Player of the Year and head  up the 2023-24 All-Conference team which is voted on by the seven coaches around the conference. 

Repeating as MASCAC Player of the Year, Grassi, a junior from Plymouth, Mass., helped the Bears to a 10-2 record  and second seed in the tournament. She finished out the season in the top 10 of the MASCAC in several categories,  including total points (535), points per game (20.6), free throw percentage (75.4), steals (59), assists (68) and blocks  (18). 14 times this season, she eclipsed the 20 point mark, including a season-best 31 points with five steals, five  assists and three rebounds against MIT.  

Fellow MASCAC Player of the Year, Carpenter, a senior from Ashley Falls, Mass., was the anchor for the MASCAC  Regular Season Champion Rams who were 11-1 this season. Throughout the season, she averaged 9.5 points  and 5.9 rebounds, but she made the biggest impact with her league-leading 193 assists, second-best free throw  percentage at 82.6 and third-highest three point percentage at 36.4. Her assists per game average of 7.4 currently  leads Division III and twice this season, she registered a triple double which is the third-most in Division III this season.  In the win over Westfield State, Carpenter finished with 21 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds.  

Octaviana Williams of Westfield State claims the 2023-24 MASCAC Defensive Player of the Year. The sophomore  guard from Springfield, Mass. was a key part of the Owls defense as she was second in the conference in steals  with 83 while registering 101 defensive rebounds. As a team, they currently are second in Division III with 22.1 steals  per game, turnovers forced at 34.78 and turnover margin at 17.37.  

Claiming the 2023-24 MASCAC Women’s Basketball Rookie of the Year is Lena Waldron of Worcester State. The  first year from Quincy, Mass. averaged 10.1 points and six rebounds per game. She also gathered 30 steals, 38  assists and seven blocks in her first season with the Lancers. Her best scoring performance of the year came in th  win over MCLA where she netted 18 points while also registering five steals, three rebounds and two assists. 

After guiding the Rams to a 11-1 record and their third conference title in the last four years, Walter Paschal of  Framingham State was named the 2023-24 BSN Sports Coach of the Year as voted on by her peers.  

Joining Grassi, Carpenter and Williams on the All-Conference First Team are Flannery O’Connor of Framingham  State, Jordan Grant and Olivia Hadla of Westfield State.  

Landing a spot on the Second Team All-Conference are Sydney Bradbury of Bridgewater State, Kelsey Yelle of  Framingham State, Kylie Gates and Ernidia Goncalves of Salem State, Katie Hurynowicz of Worcester State.

2023-24 MASCAC WOMEN’S BASKETBALL ALL-CONFERENCE TEAMS 

FIRST TEAM 

Player/Institution Class Position Hometown 

Kylie Grassi, Bridgewater State Junior Forward Plymouth, Mass. 

Gwendolyn Carpenter, Framingham State Senior Guard Ashley Falls, Mass.  

Flannery O’Connor, Framingham State Senior Forward Amesbury, Mass. 

Jordan Grant, Westfield State Senior Forward Gray, Maine  

Olivia Hadla, Westfield State Senior Guard Westfield, Mass. 

Octaviana Williams, Westfield State Sophomore Guard Springfield, Mass. 

SECOND TEAM 

Player/Institution Class Position Hometown 

Sydney Bradbury, Bridgewater State Senior Guard E. Bridgewater, Mass. 

Kelsey Yelle, Framingham State Junior Forward Easton, Mass. 

Kylie Gates, Salem State Senior Guard Pembroke, Mass. 

Ernidia Goncalves, Salem State Sophomore Forward Everett, Mass. 

Katie Hurynowicz, Worcester State Senior Guard Tyngsboro, Mass. 

CO-PLAYER OF THE YEAR 

Kylie Grassi, Bridgewater State Junior Forward Plymouth, Mass. 

Gwendolyn Carpenter, Framingham State Senior Guard Ashley Falls, Mass.  

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR 

Octaviana Williams, Westfield State Sophomore Guard Springfield, Mass. 

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR 

Lena Waldron, Worcester State First Year Guard Quincy, Mass. 

BSN SPORTS COACH OF THE YEAR 

Walter Paschal, Framingham State