Fitchburg State Defeated by Bears in MASCAC Semifinals

FITCHBURG, Mass. - #2 Fitchburg State University saw its magical season come to a close as they were defeated by #3 Bridgewater State University, 19-11, in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) semifinals on Thursday night at Elliot Field.

The Bears (11-8) ended the contest on a 6-0 run to advance to their eighth consecutive championship appearance, as they will travel to top-seeded Westfield State University on Saturday, May 2.

In a closely contested first half, Bridgewater State broke the five-minute scoreless tie with a goal by Alex King on an assist by Marissa Yowell. The Falcons responded with a pair of goals by Jaimee Lutz and Ali Laferriere to take an early 2-1 advantage.

Midway though the opening stanza the scoring came in bunches with both teams netting a pair of goals each.

With 8:39 on the clock the Bears went on a 3-0 run to regain the lead, including a pair of goals by Melissa Renauld that were assisted by Riley Cachelin. 

Kayla Panek would find the back of the net with just over three minutes remaining in the first half to cut the Falcons deficit to 11-9 heading into halftime.

In a back and forth battle in the beginning of the second half, both teams would go back and forth with goals four times to bring the score up to 13-11 before Bridgewater State would pull away with a six goal barrage.

Marissa Yowell found the back of the net at the 13:12 mark to start the 6-0 streak, as she went on to add two more to add to the Bears lead.

Fitchburg State was held scoreless the last 15 minutes of play despite many scoring opportunities.

Elizabeth Darrigo made 15 saves in the losing effort, while her counterpart Allie Forman had 19 stops in the victory for BSU.

Laferriere led the Falcons with five goals and one assist, while Comeau had a pair of tallies and one helper. Yowell finished with a game-high seven goals and one assist, while the Bears also got four goals Renauld.

Bridgewater State held a 38-33 edge in shots, while the hosts held the advantage in draw-controls, 17-15.

With the loss the Green & Gold end their season with 14-4 record, which is a program high in victories.

Bridgewater State is in search of their eighth consecutive championship in a row dating back to when the teams played in the New England Women's Lacrosse Association (NEWLA) up until 2013.