After defeating their semifinal opponents on Thursday night, Framingham State and Worcester State are set to meet Saturday in the MASCAC Women's Basketball Tournament title game.

#3 Worcester State 90, #2 Westfield State 75          Box Score

WESTFIELD, Mass. - Worcester State senior Mya Mosley (Worcester, Mass.) scored 36 points and classmate Catherine Sweeney (Lowell, Mass.) added 17 rebounds as the third-seeded Lancers tipped #2 Westfield State 90-75 in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference women's basketball semifinal game at Woodward Center on Thursday night.

With the win, Worcester State (19-8) advances to Saturday's MASCAC Championship for the second consecutive season. They will face the top seed Framingham State at 1 p.m.

The big outing from Worcester's seniors counteracted Westfield junior Melissa Gray, who netted 27 points and seven rebounds, and 12 points and nine assists from Owls senior point guard Chelsea Gray.

Westfield (13-13), the four-time defending conference tournament champs, got out of the gate slowly, trailing by as many as 15 points in the first quarter, and as many as 22 in the first half. Mosley played a huge role in the fast start, scoring the first seven points in the game. The Lancers grabbed their biggest lead of night at 37-15 with 4:32 left in the first half on a Sarah Blomgren (Lunenburg, Mass.) free throw. 

The resilient Owls were not ready to surrender, as Gray netted three 3-pointers in the final 2:21 of the half to trim the lead to 47-31 at the half.

Westfield, the top three point shooting team in the nation at more than 13 per game, fired its best shot in the third quarter. Trailing 51-33 with 7:32 left in the third, Owls unloaded as Moussette, Jenn Rennich, Gray and Isabella Aitken all connected on three-point shots as part of a 16-7 run that cut the Lancer lead to single digits at 58-49 with 2:23 left in the third quarter, before Mosley stemmed the tide with a driving layup.

Westfield trimmed the lead to eight at 66-58 on a Gray drive with 8:44 left in the game, but a Mosley putback boosted the lead back to double figures. From there, the lead hovered around the 10-point mark until Mosely drilled a three-pointer with 2:50 left to play that put Worcester up by 13 at 82-69.

Westfield was forced to foul down the stretch, and the Lancers went 6-for-8 at the line in the closing 1:03, including a 4-for-4 mark for Mosley.

Mosley finished 13-for-25 from the floor, 4-for-7 behind the arc, and 6-for-7 at the foul line. Sweeney added 17 rebounds, nine assists, and six points, while freshman Erin Gallella (Tewksbury, Mass.) finished with 16 points. 

Worcester State finished 37-for-76 (48.7 percent) from the floor and grabbed 51 rebounds to the Owls' 37. The Lancers also blocked six shots. Worcester State limited its turnovers, as the Lancers had 21 to the Owls' 20. Westfield led the nation in turnovers forced per game (32.5) and turnover margin (15.5).

#1 Framingham State 92, #4 Bridgewater State 59        Box Score

Framingham, Mass. – The top seed Framingham State University women's basketball team saw three players top the 20-point mark as the Rams defeated fourth seed Bridgewater State University 92-59 in one semifinal of the 2020 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Women's Basketball Championship Tournament at the Athletic Center.

THE BASICS:

- Score: Framingham State 92, Bridgewater State 59

- Records: Framingham State (21-5), Bridgewater State (11-16)

- Location:  Athletic Center – Framingham, Mass.  

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• With the victory, the Rams tied the program record for wins in a season and will host the championship game of the MASCAC Tournament for the first time in program history.  The Rams will host third seed Worcester State on Saturday at 1 p.m.  The Lancers defeated second seed Westfield State in the other semifinal earlier this evening.
• The Rams were led by 24 points from senior guard Emily Velozo (Tewksbury, Mass.). Velozo connected on 8-of-15 from the floor including 4-of-9 from behind the arc.
• Freshman Flannery O'Connor (Amesbury, Mass.) and senior Mary Kate O'Day (Berlin, Mass.) finished with double doubles in the game.  O'Connor tallied 22 points with 13 boards, six assists, a steal and two blocks.  O'Day scored 21 with 11 boards, five assists and four steals.
• Freshman Katty Haidul (Wakefield, Mass.) tallied 11 points off the bench, while classmate Sarah Sullivan (Sheffield, Mass.) finished with five points, four blocks and nine rebounds.
• The Bears were led by 17 points from senior Nicole Bostick (East Taunton, Mass.).  Bostick connected on 4-of-8 from behind the arc in her final collegiate game.
• Sophomore Olivia Dziadyk (Wakefield, Mass.) finished just shy of a triple double with 11 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.
• Hannah Dziadyk (Wakefield, Mass.) chipped in with nine points, while Destiny Fitzgerald (Medford, Mass.) added eight points and a game-high 15 rebounds.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Rams opened the game with an 11-0 run fueled by a combined three threes from Velozo and O'Day.  Bridgewater answered with a 9-0 run of their own fueled by four points from Fitzgerald to pull within two, 11-9, with 4:28 left in the quarter.
• The Rams pushed the lead to 24-11 after a quarter, closing the opening frame with threes from freshman Gwendolyn Carpenter (Ashley Falls, Mass.) and O'Day.
• The Rams maintained the double digit advantage in the second quarter until a three by Sydney Bradbury (East Bridgewater, Mass.) with just over three remaining in the quarter cut the deficit to eight, 34-26, for the Bears. 
• The Rams closed the half outscoring the Bears 8-0 over the final 3:08 to lead 42-26 at the break.
• The Bears chipped away at the lead in the third quarter and trailed by 10, 53-43, midway through the frame, before the Rams closed the second quarter with a 17-7 run to lead by 20 after three.  The Rams maintained the sizeable lead throughout the fourth quarter leading by as many as 39 to secure the victory.

Releases courtesy of Framingham State and Westfield State Sports Information