Fitchburg State Earns Top Seed In 2010 MASCAC Ice Hockey Championships

Courtesy of the MASCAC Sports Information Office

BUZZARDS BAY, Mass. (March 1, 2010) - Fitchburg State College has earned the top seed in the 2010 Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Men's Ice Hockey Championships, which will begin on Tuesday, March 2nd with quarterfinal round action. Semi-final round play on will start on Thursday, March 4th before concluding with the league championship game on Saturday, March 6th.

DEAN FULLER

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 at 6 p.m. and fourth-seeded Westfield State College hosting the fifth-seeded University of Massachusetts Dartmouth at 7:35 p.m.

The winner of the Westfield State-UMass Dartmouth quarterfinal match will visit Fitchburg State on Thursday evening in Fitchburg, Mass., while the Plymouth State-Worcester State winner will square off at Salem State in Thursday's other semi-final match-up. The two semi-final winners will meet for the 2010 MASCAC Championship on Saturday, March 6th at the site of the highest remaining seed.

Fitchburg State captured its first MASCAC regular season crown since the 1998-99 season under head coach Dean Fuller with an 18-5-1 overall mark and a 14-4-0 league slate in the conference. The Falcons boasted a league best 28 points led by senior forward Andrew Hutton (Brewster, Mass./Boston Harbor Wolves), who has notched 11 goals and 22 assists for 33 points. Sophomore Bobby Leiser (Monroe, N.Y./New York Applecore) led the Falcons defensively with nine victories in net and a 3.19 GAA, while freshman Chris Costigan (Salem, N.H./Northern Cyclones) has been a bright spot with 29 points on 11 goals and 18 helpers. 

BOBBY LEISER

Salem State enters post-season play ranked second in the MACAC at 13-8-4 overall (11-3-4 MASCAC) under head coach Bill O'Neil. 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 clinched the third seed this season after posting a 16-8-1 regular season mark and a 12-5-1 MASCAC slate under Head Coach Brett Tryder. 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 net-minder Aaron Runner (Alpharetta, Ga.), who has five victories and a league-best .910 saves percentage.

Fourth-seeded 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. This season, 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 enters this year's conference tournament as the fifth-seed, posting ten victories overall and five in league action under Head Coach John Rolli. This season, the Corsairs are led by junior forward Joe Hill's (Newburyport, Mass.) eight goals and 18 assists for 26 points and 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 as the sixth-seed after collecting five wins overall and three in MASCAC action under Head Coach John Guiney. 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 a .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