Buzzards Bay, Mass. — Fitchburg State College has earned the top seed in the 2010 Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference Men’s Ice Hockey Championships, which begin on Tuesday, March 2nd with quarterfinal round action and move to semi-final round play on Thursday, March 4th before concluding with the league championship game on Saturday, March 6th.
Fitchburg State and second-seeded Salem State College earned byes into Thursday’s semi-finals and will await the winners of Tuesday’s quarterfinal round contests, which will feature third-seeded Plymouth State University hosting sixth-seeded Worcester State College in a 6:00 p.m. EST face-off and fourth-seeded Westfield State College hosting the fifth-seeded University of Massachusetts Dartmouth in a contest that faces off at 7:35 p.m. EST.
The winner of the Westfield State-UMass Dartmouth quarterfinal advances to take on Fitchburg State in semi-final round action on Thursday evening in Fitchburg, Mass., while the Plymouth State-Worcester State winner will square off with Salem State in Thursday’s other semi-final match-up in Salem, Mass., with both games facing off at 7:00 p.m. EST. The two semi-final winners will meet for the 2010 MASCAC Championship on Saturday, March 6th at the site of the highest remaining seed beginning at a starting time that will be determined following Thursday’s semi-final round contests.
Fitchburg State captured its first MASCAC regular season crown since the 1988-89 season under Head Coach Dean Fuller this winter with an 18-5-1 overall mark and an 14-4 league slate that was good for 28 points, and the Falcons are led by senior forward Andrew Hutton (Brewster, Mass.), who has notched 11 goals and 22 assists for 33 points, as well as sophomore goalie Bobby Leiser (Monroe, N.Y.), who has posted nine victories and a 3.19 GAA . Salem State enters post-season play at 13-8-4 overall (11-3-4 in MASCAC action for 26 points) under Head Coach Bill O’Neill, and the Vikings are led in scoring by senior Chris MacInnis (Waltham, Mass.) and freshman Nick Lampson (Groton, Mass.), who have each registered 28 points, and between the pipes by freshman Sam Avoine (Ste-Perpetue, Que.), who leads the league with a 2.46 GAA to go with seven triumphs.
Plymouth State posted a 16-8-1 regular season mark and a 12-5-1 MASCAC slate that was good for 25 points under Head Coach Brett Tryder, and the Panthers are led by the conference’s top scorer in senior forward Chris Chambers (Crofton, Md.), who has netted 17 goals and 25 assists for 42 points, as well as senior netminder Aaron Runner (Alpharetta, Ga.), who has five victories and a league-best .910 saves percentage. Westfield State notched a 13-9-3 mark in regular season action, including a 10-5-3 slate in MASCAC action good for 23 points under Head Coach Bob Miele, and the Owls are paced in scoring by junior forward Dennis Zak’s (Dover, N.J.) 11 goals and 25 assists for 36 points and between the pipes by sophomore Ray Monroe (Shrewsbury, Mass.), who has eight wins and a 3.85 GAA to date.
UMass Dartmouth posted 10 victories overall and five in league action under Head Coach John Rolli, and the Corsairs are led by junior forward Joe Hill’s (Newburyport, Mass.) eight goals and 18 assists for 26 points as well as senior goalie Jon Dryjowicz-Burek (Ludlow, Mass.), who has nine wins and a 3.11 GAA. Worcester State rounds out this year’s championship field after collecting five wins overall and three in MASCAC action under Head Coach John Guiney, as senior forward Mark Rintel (Oakland Gardens, N.Y.) paces the Lancers in scoring with 12 goals and 17 assists for 29 points while senior goalie Andrew Evans (Cromwell, Conn.) has posted a pair of triumphs to go with an .878 saves percentage this season.
The Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference expanded to include two new affiliate members in the sport of men’s ice hockey this year, welcoming in UMass Dartmouth and Plymouth State to compete along with Fitchburg State, Framingham State, Salem State, Westfield State and Worcester State. After two years, the MASCAC tournament champion will be eligible to receive an automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Men’s Ice Hockey Championships.
2010 Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference Men’s Ice Hockey Championships
TUESDAY, MARCH 2nd - QUARTERFINALS
Game #1: #5 UMass Dartmouth (10-14-1, 5-12-1) at #4 Westfield State (13-9-3, 10-5-3) 7:35 pm
Game #2: #6 Worcester State (5-17-2, 3-13-2) at #3 Plymouth State (16-8-1, 12-5-1) 6:00 pm
THURSDAY, MARCH 4TH – SEMI-FINALS
Game #3: Westfield State/UMass Dartmouth winner at #1 Fitchburg State (18-5-1, 14-4) 7:00 pm
Game #4: Plymouth State/Worcester State winner at #2 Salem State (13-8-4, 11-3-4) 7:00 pm
SATURDAY, MARCH 6TH – CHAMPIONSHIP (AT HIGHEST REMAINING SEED)
Game #5: Semi-Final Winners TBD
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