Box Score SPRINGFIELD, Mass.— Western New England University clinched the top seed in the 2014 Commonwealth Coast Conference Women's Lacrosse Championship on Wednesday with a 14-11 victory over visiting Gordon College at Golden Bear Stadium. The Fighting Scots (11-4 overall, 6-2 CCC) will be the No. 3 seed (against #6 Curry College) in the conference tournament, which gets under way with quarterfinal action on Saturday.
Junior Kaitlynn Stevens led the WNE offense with a game-high six points on two goals and four assists, followed by senior Shelby Trebbe with four goals and sophomore Taylor Scialdone with four points (2 goals, 2 assists).
Jessica Castelline (Concord, Mass.) scored three goals and had two assists for Gordon, which was outshot 45 to 20. Stephanie Fitzgerald added a goal and two assists and Anna Blomberg contributed a pair of goals.
Junior tri-captain Jessica Scannapieco (3 goals, 3 ground balls, 12 draw controls)--the reigning CCC and ECAC New England Offensive Player of the Week--snapped a 6-6 tie with the go-ahead goal for WNE at the 20:51 mark of the second half. Trebbe then scored three straight goals to give the Golden Bears their biggest lead of the afternoon at 15:22.
Junior goalie Emily Castleman, who is this week's CCC Defensive Player of the Week, finished with six saves and four ground balls. Danielle Maguire in the Gordon goal was a big reason that the Fighting Scots didn't get blown out, ending up with 19 saves--including several shots from close range.
Blomberg scored twice and Castelline netted a goal to stake Gordon to a 3-0 advantage at 21:47 of the first half.
Scannapieco's goal six minutes later closed the gap to 3-1 before Bailey Grinnell made it 4-1. However, Scialdone, sophomore Bethany Peters and Stevens tied it at 4-4 within a span of 1 minute and 58 seconds.
The teams were tied 5-5 at halftime, including Trebbe's unassisted tally with 47 seconds remaining.
Peters opened the scoring in the second half to give the Golden Bears their first lead, as they were well on their way to completing their comeback victory.
Western New England University has earned the top seed for the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) women's lacrosse championship, which begins with quarterfinal round games on Saturday, April 26.
The Golden Bears (17-0 overall) claimed the top seed in the conference tournament after posting a perfect 8-0 record in CCC play. Top-seeded Western New England and second-seeded Endicott College (12-3 overall, 7-1 CCC) will receive byes in the tournament's quarterfinal round.
Two quarterfinal matches will be played on Saturday, April 26. Third-seeded Gordon College (11-4, 6-2) will host sixth-seeded Curry College (9-8, 3-5) at 4:00 p.m. in Wenham, Mass., while fourth-seeded Roger Williams University (9-7, 5-3) will host fifth-seeded University of New England (9-7, 4-4) at 6:30 p.m. in Bristol, R.I. as part of a women's/men's doubleheader.
Winners of the two quarterfinal matches will advance to the semifinal round on Wednesday, April 30. Top-seeded Western New England will host the winner of the Roger Williams vs. University of New England quarterfinal in Springfield, Mass. at 4:00 p.m., while second-seeded Endicott will host the winner of the Gordon vs. Curry quarterfinal in Beverly, Mass. at a time to be determined (either 4:00 p.m. or 7:00 p.m.). Both semifinal matches will be part of a women's/men's doubleheader.
Tournament action culminates with the CCC championship game on Saturday, May 3 at 1:00 p.m. The CCC tournament champion will earn an automatic berth in the upcoming 2014 NCAA Division III Women's Lacrosse Championship.
The complete tournament schedule appears below. All times are tentative and subject to change.
Click HERE for the Interactive Tournament Bracket.
Click HERE for the Printable Tournament Bracket.
2014 CCC WOMEN'S LACROSSE CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE
Quarterfinals • Saturday, April 26
#5 University of New England at #4 Roger Williams, 6:30 p.m.
#6 Curry at #3 Gordon, 4:00 p.m.
Semifinals • Wednesday, April 30
#4/5 winner at #1 Western New England, 4:00 p.m.
#3/6 winner at #2 Endicott, 4:00 p.m. or 7:00 p.m.
Championship Match • Saturday, May 3
Semifinal Winners (at higher seed), 1:00 p.m.
Note: All match times tentative and subject to change due to
possible men's/women's doubleheaders and other factors.
Release courtesy of WNE Sports Info and CCC Sports Info
