Men's Soccer Second Seed in MASCAC Championship Tournament
Westfield, Mass. – After a slow start this season, the Framingham State University men's soccer team came on strong during the conference portion of their schedule and earned the second seed in this week's Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Men's Soccer Championship.
The Worcester State University Lancers have earned the top seed in the MASCAC Men's Soccer Championship which begins with quarterfinal action on Tuesday, November 5th and continues on with the semifinals on Friday, November 8th before concluding with the championship game Sunday, November 10th.
Worcester State and Framingham State earned a first round bye as the top two regular season finishers. They await the results of the quarterfinals on Tuesday between third-seeded Bridgewater State University who hosts sixth-seeded Fitchburg State University at 2 p.m. and fourth-seeded Massachusetts Maritime who entertains fifth-seeded Salem State University at 7 p.m. The winner of Massachusetts Maritime/Salem State will meet Worcester State on Friday in the semifinals at 7 p.m. The Bridgewater State/Fitchburg State winner will face off with Framingham State on Friday morning at 11 a.m. The two Semifinal victors will meet Sunday for the 2013 Tournament Title at the highest remaining seed.
Worcester State netted 10 wins and a 6-0-1 record to go unbeaten in the MASCAC for the first time since 2005. Senior forward Brendan Whitson led the Lancers with 12 goals and three assists for 27 points. Teammate Alex Wolfel was right behind with nine goals and seven assists for 25 points. Goalkeeper Nick Zucco finished with 10 wins, including six shutouts and a goals against average of 1.00.
Framingham State concluded their season with seven wins and a 4-2-1 mark in the conference. Junior Bryan DaSilva (Milford, Mass.) had four goals and four assists on the season for the Rams, while teammate Maycon Malta (Milford, Mass.) added four goals and an assist. Newcomer Gilvan Mendes (Framingham, Mass.) finished with three goals and one assist for seven points in his first year for Framingham State.
Bridgewater State finished the regular season with seven victories and a 3-1-3 conference record. Teammates Craig Shadduck and Colin Neri both had six goals and an assist for the Bears. Goalie Matt Bagley finished the regular season with seven wins, including six shutouts and a 1.05 goals against average. Massachusetts Maritime earned their first playoff berth in nine years on the back of a seven win season and 3-3-1 MASCAC record. Asa Mills led the Buccaneers with four goals and an assist for nine points while teammate Connor McInnis netted three goals and an assist of his own for seven points.
Last season's regular season champion Salem State notched three victories and a conference record of 2-4-1 to claim the fifth seed. Reigning MASCAC Player of the Year Eryk Fernandez paced the Vikings with five goals for 10 points. Senior forward Saimir Zepaj added three goals and an assist for seven points. Fitchburg State rounds out the championship field with six wins and a 1-2-4 conference mark. Goalie Aidan Hanratty was dominant for the Falcons with a 0.50 goals against average and seven shutouts on the year.
Last season, the third-seeded Westfield State Owls upset the top-seeded Salem State Vikings to earn the 2012 Men's Soccer Championship.
Portions of release courtesy of MASCAC Media Relations.