Women’s Soccer Downed by Worcester in MASCAC Semi-final
Worcester, Mass. – The Framingham State women's soccer team saw their MASCAC Tournament run come to a close with a 3-0 loss to Worcester State in the semi-final round Friday at John F. Coughlin Field. The Lancers will continue onto the MASCAC Championship game on Sunday in Worcester, as they will square up against Bridgewater State for a 12 p.m. game time. The Rams slip to 11-7-2 on the season and will await a potential bid into the ECAC Div. III Tournament next week.
After a scoreless first half, the Worcester State Lancers came out striking in the second, as senior Alicia Macomber (Stoughton, Mass.) freshman Nikki DiPilla (Sterling, Mass.), and junior Kendal Bergenholtz (Grafton, Mass.) came through with a score each.
Possession in the first half was pretty equal in the first half as Framingham State tallied six shots, and Worcester State totaled five. The Rams were the first of the two to take a shot on the night as junior defender, Angela Pallotta (Sterling, Mass.) took a free kick on the right side, about 30-yards out, and placed the ball on goal, but Worcester State's goaltender, Jillian Witkowski (Leicester, Mass.), made a great stop for her first save on the night.
Worcester State powered back with a direct kick from Macomber, but the shot was just wide. Each team had other opportunities to score in the first half, but the defense was strong and didn't permit either team to put a number up on the scoreboard.
After halftime, the Lancers came out firing just a minute in, when freshman forward Jenna Martin (Salem, N.H.) arched the ball in the air, and Macomber was able to get a touch and shot on goal about 15-yards out. Macomber drilled the ball into the top left corner of the net and gave the Lancers the 1-0 lead.
Just one minute later, in the 47th minute, DiPilla found herself with Framingham State's goalie down and an open goal central 15-yards out. She was able to take a shot on an open goal and place the Lancers up 2-0 on the Rams.
In the 77th minute, the Lancers widened their lead with an unassisted goal by Bergenhotlz. The junior dribbled down the left side of the field and snuck a ball past Framingham's senior goalkeeper, Sara Sullivan (Quincy, Mass.) to close the game out with a 3-0 win.
Witkowski recorded her 10th win of the season and registered seven saves on the night. Sullivan took the loss for the Rams, as she logged six saves in her 90 minutes of play.
Palotta led the Rams in shots with four on goal, while Bergenholtz led the Lancers with four (two on goal).
*Portions of release courtesy of Worcester State sports information*