Men's Soccer Continues Quest For MASCAC Crown Friday Evening With League Semifinal Clash At Worcester State
After earning the program’s first post-season victory in school history on Tuesday night, the Massachusetts Maritime men’s soccer team continues its quest for the 2013 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament title on Friday evening when the fourth-seeded Buccaneers take on top-seeded Worcester State in semifinal round action at Coughlin Field in Worcester, Mass. beginning at 7:00 p.m. EST.
Massachusetts Maritime, under the guidance of 21st-year Head Coach and 2013 MASCAC Champion’s Choice Coach of the Year Greg Perry, advanced to Friday’s semifinal with a 1-0 league quarterfinal round triumph over fifth-seeded Salem State at Clean Harbors Stadium on Tuesday, as sophomore Connor McInnis (Duxbury, Mass./Tabor Academy) provided the heroics for the Buccaneers by netting the game-winning golden goal on an assist from junior Stuart Kinsman (Granville, Mass./Southwick-Tolland) with just 1:46 remaining in the match. Freshman Joe Cohen (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth South), the reigning conference Rookie of the Week, made a pair of saves to record his sixth win and fourth shutout of the season in goal for the hosts, who improved to 8-8-2 overall with the triumph.
McInnis and senior tri-captain Asa Mills (Westport, Mass./Bishop Stang) lead Massachusetts Maritime in scoring with four goals and an assist for nine points each, as the duo has combined for four game-winning tallies to date. Mills, who along with junior midfielder Rob Robbs (Braintree, Mass./Braintree) earned spots on the MASCAC all-conference team for a second straight season yesterday, keys a Buccaneer backfield unit along with fellow senior tri-captains Daniel Riley (Hanover, Mass./Hanover) and Stephen Machaby (Rockland, Mass./Rockland), while Cohen has posted a 1.62 goals against average to go with 85 saves in 16 contests to date.
Worcester State claimed the top-seed in this year’s MASCAC Championships after capturing the conference regular season title with a 6-0-1 slate as part of a 10-3-4 overall mark under Head Coach Jason Willis. The Lancers are led by 2013 MASCAC Player of the Year Brendan Whitson, who has collected 12 goals and three assists for 27 points during his senior campaign, while sophomore Nick Zucco has posted 10 wins (six via shutout) to go with a 1.00 goals against average and 81 saves.
Massachusetts Maritime is looking to avenge a 4-1 regular season setback suffered to Worcester State back on October 12th at Clean Harbors Stadium, as the Lancers snapped a 1-1 tie midway through the first half en route to their triumph.
Friday’s other MASCAC semifinal will match second-seeded Framingham State and third-seeded Bridgewater State, as that contest will take place on Friday morning at 11:00 a.m. EST at Maple Street Field in Framingham, Mass. The two semifinal winners will meet for the conference tournament crown at the site of the highest remaining seed on Sunday afternoon, as the MASCAC champion will receive the league’s automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Championships.