WESTFIELD, Mass. -- Westfield State University will make its second straight appearance in the NCAA Division III women's lacrosse tournament (bracket), this Saturday, May 12, as the Owls will face Morrisville (NY) State College in the opening round at Clark Field on the Gettysburg College Campus in Gettysburg, Pa.

"It's a huge step for our program, as it shows that our bid to the tournament last year was not a fluke, and we return as a more experienced group," said Westfield State fifth-year head coach Jeff Pechulis. "It was our #1 goal for this season - and it will be next year as well."

In 2017 the Owls won their NCAA Tournament debut, defeating Castleton State (Vt.), 15-8, before falling to William Smith College, the sixth-ranked team in the nation, on the Herons' home field.

The Owls face a similar scenario this season, facing Morrisville on a neutral field in the opener, with #3 ranked, and defending National Champion Gettysburg (16-2) awaiting the winner.

"We know the level of play when you get to this point in the season, you can throw the records out," said Pechulis. "Our players recognize that this is the result of their dedication to serious lacrosse, and how they prepared through fall ball, through their winter conditioning, to when we get started in the spring."

Westfield is led by junior goalkeeper Maria Woodall (King Phillip/Norfolf, Mass.), the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference player of the year, who led the league in both goals-against average and save percentage.

The Owls utilize a balanced attack that has seen six players score 20 or more goals, led by Sydney Lambert's (Hanover, Mass.) 51. Pechulis is not afraid to use the Owls depth on attack, in the midfield, or on defense.

"We've picked up that we need to rely on each other, and the importance of teamwork," he said. "We take pride that we share the scoring and the defensive responsibility, and we have depth - we don't have any 'practice players' and the team knows it."

Westfield's depth was on display as the Owls placed eight players on the MASCAC's All-Conference teams, with Lambert, Woodall, and defender Caroline Arket (Arlington/Pouquag, NY)on the league's first team.

The Owls earned an automatic bid to the NCAA's by virtue of winning the MASCAC tournament and have set a school record for wins this season with a 17-2 mark, including a perfect 7-0 in the MASCAC.

Westfield has faced Morrisville once before. The Owls played the Mustangs in 2012, with the Owls taking a 17-15 win in a March matchup in Motown.

Morrisville enters the tournament at 12-7 overall and received the Northeast Athletic Conference's automatic bid as the league champion. Like the Owls, the Mustangs are making their second straight NCAA Tournament appearance.

The Mustangs have a high scoring group, averaging 14.7 goals per game and allow opponents 8.5 goals per game

Senior Gianna Branca (Camillus, N.Y.), the NEAC player of the year, leads the Mustangs with 127 total points on the year, netting 69 goals and assisting 58 others. Junior Courtney Cavellier (Rodman, N.Y.), across 19 games on the season, has added 58 scores to go along with 12 assists for 70 points, while fellow attack Celia Abbott (Shortsville, N.Y.) and Jillian Hughes (Brookfield, N.Y.) have added 45 points each behind their combined 56 goals and 34 assists.

"They are a very strong team," said Pechulis. "They have a lot of weapons and score a lot, and they move the ball around with the best of them, so we will have strong focus on our defense in practice this week."

The winner of the Owls-Mustangs tilt will face the host Bullets at 1 p.m. on Sunday.

"It's a home of women's lacrosse tradition," said Pechulis about playing at Gettysburg, which has won two national titles and hosted the final four on two other occasions. "They have a great coach, and a great program year in and year out. We are super excited to have the chance to play there and see the tradition of good lacrosse."

Game Program: The NCAA's digital game program is available at: https://www.ncaa.com/DIIIWomensLacrosse

Tickets: The ticket gate at Clark Field will open 75 minutes before game time (11:45 a.m., Saturday and Sunday)
Adults - $6
Students - $3 (ages 13-18 or college student with an ID from one of the participating institutions)
Children (ages 3-12) - $2
Children, the age of 2 and under, will be admitted free of charge

Coverage: Gettysburg will provide live stats and webstream video of the games.