WESTFIELD, Mass. – Westfield State first-year guard Octaviana Williams (Springfield, Mass.) paced the Owls with 15 points as Westfield used a balanced scoring attack to accelerate past Framingham State 90-76 in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Semifinal game from Logan Gymnasium on Friday night.
The Owls advance into the MASCAC Championship game and will travel to #1-seed Bridgewater State for a noon tipoff on Sunday. The last time Westfield went to the conference title game was in 2019 as the Owls went on to win the MASCAC championship over top-seeded Worcester State, 84-73. Framingham State, who were the 2022 defending MASCAC Champions, are eliminated from postseason contention.
Westfield set the tone of the game from the start with Williams scoring on the first offensive possession of the game, then Olivia Hadla (Westfield, Mass.) forced a turnover on the first Rams' possession, leading to a lay-in of her own to put the Owls up 4-0.
The game remained tight throughout the quarter with the Owls defense standing tall, allowing just nine points while forcing ten Framingham turnovers to enter the second quarter up 12-9.
The Owls pushed the lead to six points in the early stages of the second quarter with Maddie Pond (Holyoke, Mass.) setting up Jess Gardner (Webster, Mass.) for a triple to give Westfield a 17-11 advantage with 8:13 left in the half.
Westfield held the lead midway through the second until the Rams broke off an 11-2 scoring run which was finished off by a Katherine Haselton (Greenfield, Mass.) layup to put the Rams up 33-25 with 1:15 remaining in the half.
The Owls responded in an empathic way in the final minute of the half, charging downhill with a jumper from Hannah Sheldon (Taunton, Mass.), then a Pond steal and score cut the deficit to four points in a matter of eight seconds.
Lindsey Bohenko (Lowell, Mass.) drilled two massive three pointers on consecutive possessions as the Owls regained the lead, 35-33 with 27 seconds left in the period. Gwendolyn Carpenter (Ashley Falls, Mass.) knocked down a free throw as the half closed, but the Owls weathered the Rams scoring surge, and held the lead heading into the break, 35-34.
Framingham opened the third quarter on a 7-0 run with Flannery O'Connor (Amesbury, Mass.) and Kelsey Yelle (South Easton, Mass.) scoring consecutive baskets, then Haselton nailed a three to put the Rams in front 41-35.
With the Owls fighting an uphill battle, Lila Labrie (Schenectady, N.Y.) halted the Rams' scoring spurt by hitting a three-pointer then forcing a turnover and dishing a pass to Pond for a transition layup to make it a one-point game, 41-40. Labrie then stole another pass from Haselton, then got her defender in the air with a pump fake under the rim, laying it home to put the Owls back on top, 42-41 with 7:10 to play in the third.
From that point forward, the Owls would not relinquish the lead, and after back-to-back threes from Pond and Gardner, Westfield mounted a 50-43 lead crossing through the halfway point of the third.
Framingham attempted to cut into the lead, bringing it back to four points. But Westfield had numerous answers throughout the quarter, beginning with Williams who forced in a layup to gain a five-point lead. Yelle scored on the other end for the Rams, then Morgan Berthiaume (Webster, Mass.) knocked down a triple to distance themselves again to six points.
The Owls eventually pushed the lead into double figures thanks to a Mia-Angelina Leslie (Lewiston, Maine) three, followed by second chance points by Sheldon as the quarter expired to put the Owls up 66-55 after three periods.
Framingham refused to go away, clawing back to make it a six-point game with just under eight minutes to play. Once again, the Owls answered the mini-scoring run using second chance points and defense to drive the lead back into double digits. Williams corralled a loose ball on the offensive glass, then found Jordan Grant (Gray, Maine) for a bucket to make it an eight-point game. Jordyn Lummus (Pittsfield, Mass.) then swiped a pass and converted a layup on the other end to increase their lead back to ten points (72-62) with 7:20 left in the game.
More havoc in the backcourt from the Owls defense led to transition points again after a made basket from Williams, with Labrie finishing a layup set up from Williams to give the Owls their largest lead of the night to take a 77-64 lead into the final minutes of the game.
The Rams would cut it down to six points, but free throw shooting down the stretch by the Owls was pivotal to closing out the win and to send Westfield into the MASCAC Championship game.
Westfield had four double-figure scorers with Williams scoring 15 followed by Pond and Gardner at 11 points. Grant collected ten points as nine Owls' players scored six or more points in a potent offensive attack. Gardner registered a game-high 12 rebounds to secure a double-double.
O'Connor led the Rams in points (18) and rebounds (11). Yelle followed with 17 points and eight rebounds. Katty Haidul (Gilford, N.H.) and Carpenter both added 14 points.
Westfield outscored Framingham 55-42 in the second half, including a 31-point third quarter to drive the Owls lead into double digits heading into the closing frame.
Overall, the Owls shot 37.6% from the field (32-85), connected on eight of 30 triples (30.8%). After not attempting a single free throw through the first half of the game, Westfield got to the stripe and converted in clutch moments, finishing a highly efficient 81.8% from the line (18-22).
Live coverage of the championship game can be found at WestfieldStateOwls.com along with live stats and championship coverage.