Volleyball earns fourth seed in MASCAC playoffs, will host Worcester State Tuesday at 6pm

Bracket

North Adams, MA- The MCLA Volleyball program has earned the fourth seed in this week's MASCAC postseason tournament.  The Trailblazers will host #5 Worcester State in the Amsler Campus Center Gym on Tuesday at 6pm.  #3 Bridgewater State hosts #6 Salem State in the other quarterfinal matchup.  

After finishing with a perfect 7-0 record in the conference, Westfield State is the top seed in the MASCAC Volleyball Tournament.

In the semifinal round on Thursday, #1 Westfield State will play the winner of MCLA/Worcester State at 7 pm while #2 Framingham State will host the winner of Bridgewater State/Salem State at 7:15 pm.

The two semifinal winners will then meet on Saturday, November 9 at the highest remaining seed for a shot at the MASCAC Tournament crown and a NCAA Tournament berth. 

MCLA vs. Worcester State:

Just two weeks ago, the Trailblazers and Lancers hooked up in Worcester for a key matchup that determined who would host this matchup.  The Trailblazers got the better of the Lancers that night prevailing 3-0 to earn the right to host.  The match was very tight throughout the first two sets as MCLA eeked out 25-23 wins in those games.  The Trailblazers rolled to a 25-12 third set win to close out the match.

Reagan Scattergood, Kelly Moczulski, and Madison Jayne all had solid offensive nights as the trio combined for 27 of the Trailblazers 38 kills in the contest.  The Trailblazers concluded the conference season 4-3. In her first year with the team, Outside Hitter Moczulski closed out the regular season in the top 10 of the league in several categories, including total kills (265), kills per set (3.01), service aces (57) and digs (261).   MCLA senior Tessa Sestito collected 655 assists this season, good for second in the league, as she has set up the offense well for most of the regular season.  

The Lancers had three wins during the MASCAC slate. Worcester State's Outside Hitter Natalie Gillis tallied 268 kills (2.98 per set), 210 digs, 12 total blocks and 10 service aces.  In the match with MCLA, Gillis was tough to handle as she collected 13 kills on just 33 attacks.  She will be the focal point of the Lancer offense.

The winner of the matchup on Tuesday will advance to face the top seeded Westfield State University Owls on Thursday night.

MASCAC Championship Notes:

With a first round bye and top spot, Westfield State earned the MASCAC Regular Season title with their 7-0 mark. Defensive Specialist Lizze Taylor ended the regular season first in the conference in total digs with 555, digs per set at 5.66 and service aces with 57. Middle Hitter Brianna Starkey collected 255 kills (2.52 per set) along with 73 total blocks, 27 solo, 65 digs and 13 service aces for the Owls.

With the other first round bye and the second seed is Framingham State who was 6-1 during league play this year. Reigning MASCAC Rookie of the Year Outside Hitter Brandee Thomas finished the season atop the conference in kills and kills per set with 277 and 3.38, respectively. She also had 101 digs, 13 total blocks and 12 service aces. 

Bridgewater State has the third seed after finishing 5-2 in the MASCAC. Setter Casey Holmes tallied 489 assists (6.52 per set), 169 digs, 34 service aces and 19 blocks for the Bears. 

Closing out this year's tournament seeds is Worcester State and Salem State in fifth and sixth. The Lancers had three wins while the Vikings had two during the MASCAC slate. For Salem State, Right Side Morgan Adams finished with 427 assists (6.28 per set), 142 digs, 20 service aces and 13 total blocks. 

Worcester State won back-to-back MASCAC Tournament Champions during the 2018 tournament with a 3-0 win over third seed Westfield State to grab a spot in the NCAA Tournament.