Westfield Clips Fitchburg State, 75-59

Falcons to face Westfield State in MASCAC quarterfinal on Tuesday

WESTFIELD, Mass. (February 21, 2009) - Senior Jeff Kozik (Auburn, Mass./Auburn) registered a team-high 19 points and five rebounds as Fitchburg State fell to Westfield State 75-59 in its season finale this afternoon.

Kozik led the Fitchburg State offense, shooting 4-of-9 from the field, while hitting a  perfect 10-of-10 from the free throw line. Junior Tim Graham (Arlington, Mass./Arlington) aid Kozik on the attack with 15 points and nine boards, connecting for 9-of-15 shots from the floor. Sophomore Elliot Knower (Templeton, Mass./Narragansett) chipped in with nine points and four caroms.

Junior Joe Dicruttalo (Franklin, Mass./Franklin) and classmate Asa Abbott (New Paltz, N.Y./New Paltz) led the Westfield State offense with a team-high 15 points each, while senior Dave Jaehing (Quincy, Mass./BC High) recorded a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds.

Westfield State opened the contest with an 11-2 run and jumped out to a 40-24 advantage at the end of the first half. The Owls went up by as much as 21 points during the half, but the Falcons rallied off five straight points to close the period down by 16. Westfield State used a 48.4 first half shooting percentage to its advantage, while holding Fitchburg State to only 28.6% from the field.

In the second half, Fitchburg State battled back, cutting the Westfield State lead to 12 (53-41) with only 11:47 remaining in the period, but the Owls responded moments later, posting a 9-5 run over the next three minutes to take a commanding 64-46 lead. Fitchburg State was able to heat up in the second frame, hitting 46.2% of its shot from the field and 10-of-13 from the free-throw line, but the Owls continued its hot-shooting, hitting 43.8% from the field en route their 17^th victory of the season.

Fitchburg Staten ended the regular season with an 8-15 record overall and a 2-10 mark in the MASCAC. The Falcons qualified as the sixth-seed in the MASCAC Tournament and will travel to back to third-seeded Westfield State (17-8, 9-3 MASCAC) on Tuesday for a quarter-final match starting at 7 p.m.

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Westfield 75, Fitchburg State 59