Three-peat!!! Volleyball Wins Third Straight MASCAC Championship
Framingham, Mass.- The Framingham State volleyball team has won the 2016 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Tournament Championship after defeating #3 seed MCLA 3-0 in the championship round Saturday afternoon in Framingham.
This is the third straight year the Rams have won the MASCAC Tournament and 4th time in 5 seasons. The Rams (22-11) earn the conference's automatic qualifier into the NCAA Tournament. Framingham State awaits their matchup to be announced during the NCAA Division III Volleyball Selection Show that will air this Monday, November 7th at 12:30 PM ET on NCAA.com.
Framingham State senior and 2016 MASCAC Player of the Year, Alycia Rackliffe (Feeding Hills, Mass.) was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.
Final: #1 Framingham State 3, #3 MCLA 0
Tournament MVP Alycia Rackliffe (Feeding Hills, Mass.) paced the Rams with a game-high sixteen kills for a .344 hitting percentage, adding seven digs and four assists. Senior Julia Wan (South Deerfield, Mass.) added seven kills and 8 digs. Mackenzie Whalen (Norton, Mass.) and Deirdre Fay (Cornwall, Mass.) each added a team-high 11 digs while Whalen earned 29 assists.
Allison Clark (San Jose, CA) led the Trailblazers with 8 kills and 12 digs. Michelle Laga (Mahopac, NY) also earned 12 digs which Taylor Wiese (Las Vegas, NV) added 14 assists.
The first set was tight late in the set when a Fish kill cut the FSU lead to 18-17 but the Rams went on a four point rally to pull away and win the frame 25-18. The second game also got off to an even start but the Rams pulled away after a 10-2 run to go up 20-11.
MCLA finishes as the MASCAC Tournament Runner-up for the 2nd straight year and end the tournament with an overall record of 17-14.
Semifinal #2: #3 MCLA 3, #2 Westfield State 1
The third seeded MCLA Volleyball team punched their ticket into the MASCAC Championship game as the Trailblazers defeated the second seeded Westfield State Owls in a match played in Framingham. MCLA avenged an early season loss to the Owls who end their season at 13-18.
With the win, MCLA (17-13) advances to the MASCAC title game to face the top seed and host, Framingham State Rams. The Rams defeated the Trailblazers 3-0 earlier this season in North Adams.
The Trailblazers dropped the first set as the Owls came out swinging taking it 25-15. MCLA would rebound snagging the second 25-22 before taking control of the match with a 25-16 third set win.
The Trailblazers would eventually close out the match with a 25-14 win in the fourth and final set.
Allison Clark (San Jose, CA) was outstanding for MCLA collecting a match best 18 kills on 40 attacks. The senior also had 9 digs. Beatrice Lechler (Point Lookout, NY) and Taylor Wiese (Las Vega, NV) each had 17 assists in the match. Michelle Laga (Mahopca, NY) had 12 digs to pace the defense while Lechler added 10. MCLA hit a solid .232 in the match and collected 12 aces led by Rebecca Godbout's three.
The Owls were led by Paige Donahue (Reading, Mass.) and Jen Green (Charlton, Mass.) who had 10 and 9 kills respectively. Brigid Murray (Norfolk, Mass.) had 27 assists. Westfield was hit just .098 for the match and committed 24 attack errors in the contest.
This marks the second straight finals matchup between the Trailblazers and Rams. Last season, the Rams defeated MCLA 3-0 in North Adams to clinch the league's NCAA tournament bid.
Semifinal #1: #1 Framingham State 3, #4 Bridgewater State 0
In the day's opening match top seed Framingham State University swept fourth seeded Bridgewater State 3-0 by scores of 25-20, 25-14 & 25-16.
With the win, the Rams improved to 21-10 on the year and advanced the MASCAC Championship Round.
The Rams were paced by senior Alycia Rackliffe (Feeding Hills, Mass.) who had a game high 19 kills with a hitting percentage of .405. Senior Julia Wan (South Deerfield, Mass.) added 12 kills with a hitting percentage of .333. Sophomore Mackenzie Whalen (Norton, Mass.) had a game-high 34 assists adding 8 digs.
The Bears received a double-double performance from senior Hannah Maymon (Narragansett, RI) who registered 11 kills and 12 digs. Clara Goncalves (Dennis, Mass.) added nine kills and Cassidy Tyros (Chelmsford, Mass.) picked up a game-high 17 digs.
The Bears see their season close with an overall record of 11-20.
*Portions of this release courtesy of MCLA sports information