MCLA falls to Westfield 2-1, awaits postseason opponent
The MCLA women fell to rival Westfield State 2-1 this afternoon on senior day. Prior to the game, MCLA honored their five seniors. With the loss, MCLA closes the regular season with a 13-4 record and will await seeding in the upcoming MASCAC playoffs that begin on Wednesday
North Adams, MA- The MCLA Women's soccer team dropped a tough 2-1 decision to conference rival Westfield State this afternoon at Ron Shewcraft Field. It was the regular season finale for both teams as the Trailblazers fall to 13-4, while Westfield moves to 14-1-2. Both teams will compete in next week's MASCAC postseason tournament.
The first half opened with MCLA missing a golden opportunity to jump in front. Just three minutes into the game, junior forward Jess Tietgens (Stamford, VT) put a great pass forward to senior Harmony McGorman (Orleans, MA). McGorman was one on one with Westfield keeper Jessica Pieciak (Three Rivers, MA) who made a tremendous save just deflecting the ball over the crossbar.
The Owls turned up the pressure after that save and broke through at the 14:47 mark when senior Meg Gearin (Groton, MA) converted a feed from Ali Pease (Ludlow, MA) beating MCLA keeper Jen Wehner (Cooperstown, NY) in the upper left corner for a 1-0 advantage. Wehner would turn away numerous shots in the next few minutes until the Trailblazers finally broke in transition. In the 24th minute, Danielle Parenteau (Southampton, MA) would thread a beautiful pass past two defenders to a streaking Tietgens, who pounded home her MASCAC best 22nd goal of the season tying the score at 1.
The tie was short lived though, as Westfield would net the eventual game winner just three minutes later. Junior forward Kate MacKellan (Wilbraham, MA) sent a curling corner kick into the box that Wehner attempted to catch. She fumbled the ball and Colleen Bazinet (Charlton, MA) would clean it up making it 2-1 in favor of the Owls. MCLA had another great chance to tie the game in the 40th minute when Tietgens couldn't convert a loose ball in the box.
The second half saw few quality scoring chances on both sides. Neither team would add another tally as Westfield would run out the clock to secure the victory.
On the afternoon, Westfield outshot MCLA 27-9. Wehner made 17 stops in net while her counterpart, Pieciak stopped three.
With the win, Westfield earns the top seed in the upcoming MASCAC playoffs. MCLA must await further MASCAC results as they will enter the tournament as either a #2 or #3 seed. The first round begins on Wednesday November 4th.