Softball Advances to Championship Round of MASCAC Tournament

Bridgewater, Mass. – The fifth seed Framingham State University softball team advanced to the championship round of the 2014 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Softball Tournament as the Rams posted an 8-2 victory over #3 Worcester State University in an elimination game on Saturday afternoon at Alumni Park.

Framingham (21-19) will take on top seed and tournament host Bridgewater State University in the championship round on Sunday at 11 a.m.  The defending champion Bears are undefeated in the tournament with a pair of 6-0 shutout wins over Framingham and Worcester.  The Lancers wrap up the 2014 campaign with an overall record of 13-22.

The Rams banged out 13 hits in the win led by senior Alyssa Begin (Salem, Mass.) and sophomore Jess Anthony (Stoneham, Mass.).  Begin was a perfect 4-for-4 at the plate with a double and two runs scored, while Anthony went 3-for-4 with a double and four RBI.

Senior Andrea Smith (Milford, Mass.) earned the complete game victory in the circle for Framingham as she allowed two runs on eight hits with a walk and three strikeouts.  Smith (6-12) gave up a pair of runs on the three hits in the bottom of the first but then settled down to shut down the Lancers the rest of the way.

Kayla Humphrey (Wallingford, Conn .) was saddled with the loss for Worcester as she worked the first five innings. Humphrey (5-7) allowed six runs (four earned) on ten hits with a walk and three strikeouts.

Leading 3-2 after four innings of play, Framingham pushed across three runs in the fifth and added two more in the seventh to put the game out of reach. Anthony doubled home a pair of runs in the seventh and also singled home a run to cap off the scoring in the fifth.

Junior Shelby Phillips (Taunton, Mass.) also finished with multiple hits for the Rams as she singled twice, walked and scored two runs in four plate appearances.

Meghan Rich (Chelmsford, Mass.), who came in to pitch in relief of Humphrey after starting the game at first base, was the only Lancer to record multiple hits as she went 2-for-4.

Notes: Bridgewater has won the MASCAC Tournament eight times since the inaugural tournament of 2001.  Framingham captured the MASCAC title in 2007.

Release courtesy of BSU Sports Information.