Worcester State Earns Top Seed in the 2026 MASCAC Women's Ice Hockey Tournament
For the first time since coming under the MASCAC umbrella, Worcester State earns the top seed in the 2026 MASCAC Women's Ice Hockey Tournament which begins Wednesday with the first round contest.
For the first time since coming under the MASCAC umbrella, Worcester State earns the top seed in the 2026 MASCAC Women's Ice Hockey Tournament which begins Wednesday with the first round contest.
On Wednesday, February 5 #4 Anna Maria will host #5 Framingham State at 5:40 pm with the winner meeting the Lancers on Friday, February 27 at 7:20 pm. #2 Rivier will host the other semifinal Friday facing off with #3 Salem State at 6:50 pm.
The two semifinal winners will then meet on Friday, March 7 at the highest remaining seed for the MASCAC Tournament crown.
Worcester State skated into the semifinal round and the regular season title after going 10-2 during conference play. Kelsey Czerniawski was a force in goal, making 526 saves with a league-leading 1.37 goals against average, .956 save percentage, 12 wins and a .667 win percentage over 18 games played.
Getting a first round bye with the two seed is Rivier. The Raiders finished with an 8-4 mark in league action. In her first season with the team, Chloe Bryda made her presence known, leading the MASCAC in points with 25, goals with 15 and game-winning scores with five. She also collected 10 assists and a power play tally.
Salem State gets the final bye into the semis after going 6-4-2 for the third seed. Aislinn Bennett led the conference in assists with 11 to close out the regular season. She also netted a goal for 12 points over her 20 games.
Kicking off the tournament Wedneday and rounding out the tournament field are Anna Maria and Framingham State with the fourth and fifth seed, respectively. The look to Mia Provenzo for their tournament run after she was fourth in the conference in goals with seven while assisting on four goals for 11 points. For the Rams, Lily Chamoun led the conference with 762 saves with a .917 save percentage and a .395 GAA.
During the first-ever MASCAC Tournament in 2025, Plymouth State and Rivier competed in the second-longest game in DIII women's ice hockey history with the Panthers coming out on top 2-1 to take the title.