Fantastic Four Lead Lancers over Bears in MASCAC Showdown

Worcester, MA- The Worcester State Lancers looked to rebound from their first conference loss in a rematch with Bridgewater State at the John F. Coughlin Field on the Worcester State University campus. The last time these two teams faced Lancers sneaking in a 2-0 victory over the Bears. 

FINAL SCORE: WORCESTER 4 - BRIDGEWATER 2

The first period it was a battle between the Bears and the Lancers,  but the Lancers were the first to strike with an early 1-0 lead against the Bears with a goal from junior Natayla Morin (Barre,Mass.) off a crisp pass from junior Madison Avilla (Westport, Mass.). That goal carried the momentum early in the first quarter that would see the Lancers through a majority of action in the game. Bridgewater had a chance to tie things up early when they were awarded an early stroke, but Madison Ellis' attempt traveled wide left of the cage to preserve the 1-0 lead for Worcester State.

The start of the second was a showing of Double Trouble as Morin and Avilla partnered up again as  Avilla scored off a redirect pass from Morin and the Lancers grabbed a 2-0 lead against the Bears, a score that would sit through halftime.

The third quarter did not see the Lancers taking their foot off the pedal as Morin scored another one for the Lancers with an assist by sophomore Charlotte Macgregor ( Bellingham, Mass.) to grab a 3-0. The third was full of action for Worcester as they doubled their halftime score early  with, what has become the staple of the game, the Lancer's Dynamic Duo of seniors Grace Adams (Leominster, Mass.) and Zoe Anthansopoulos (Hopedale, Mass.) partnered up for goal number four to extend the Lancers lead to 4-0. It looked to be a walkaway victory for Worcester, but after some substitutions and game plan shifts the Bears managed to begin to mount a comeback. Bridgewater's first goal of the game came off a set piece corner that found Charlotte McElroy with the goal off a perfectly placed pass by Emelia Westwater to cut the Lancers lead down to three.

The start of the fourth saw the Bears continuing to mount their comeback as just a minute into the quarter a shot off a corner banged off the outside post resulting in a scrum in front of the cage before Lexi James was able to coral the ball of the defensive sticks and push the ball across the line to decrease the lead 4-2. Neither team was willing to concede defeat as the remaining 14 minutes of action clicked down, but the Lancers defense led by sophomore Allison Keenan (Marlborough, MA) managed to shut down the attack and preserve the victory. 

Adams led the team with 10 shots, while Morin recorded two goals and an assist in the game. Junior Madison Ferrara (Somerset, Mass.)  recording 3 saves in the matchup.

The next matchup for the Lancers (8-6, 6-1) is against conference rivals Fitchburg State (3-9, 2-5) at Fitchburg State on Saturday, October 21, 2023.