BEVERLY – Trailing 4-2 in the bottom of the sixth, Michael Casciano (Somers, Conn.) crushed a 3-1
fastball over the left field fence to give second-seeded Endicott an eventual 5-4 victory over third-seeded Western New England on Saturday afternoon in game four of the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Tournament at Hempstead Stadium.Â
Nick Quattro (Canton, Conn.) quieted the Golden Bears’ bats over the next two innings behind two strikeouts and four groundouts, while Will Bryant (Cumberland, Maine) slammed the door on his conference-leading seventh save of the season with a 4-6-3 double play ball and a strikeout swinging to lock up the victory.Â
Quattro picked up the win (7-3) over 4 1/3 innings, four hits, one run (earned), two walks, and two punchouts. Meanwhile, Western New England starter Paul Wetmore (Hamden, Conn.) was tagged with the loss (5-3) on six innings pitched, four hits, five runs (three earned), two free passes, and four strikeouts.Â
After both teams posted a pair of runs in the first, the Golden Bears doubled their advantage (4-2) with a solo no-doubter home run by Daniel Morin (Salem, N.H.) in the third and a sacrifice fly in the fifth via Brian Valeriano (Stratford, Conn.) before Endicott completed its comeback behind Casciano’s three-run jack.Â
BEYOND THE BOX SCOREÂ
- Mike Kochiss (Fairfield, Conn.) extended his on-base streak to 12 games with his 1-for-3, one run scored line at the plate.
- Steve Morganelli (Milford, Mass.) and Chris Seidl (Dracut, Mass.) both drew one-out walks prior to Casciano’s bomb.
- Endicott is 15-6 at home this season, and 9-1 in its last 10 games.
FOR THE FOESÂ
- Alex Loparco (Riverside, Conn.) and Morin both collected two hits apiece in the loss.
- Western New England’s bullpen did not give up a hit, walk or strike anyone out over the last two innings. The Golden Bears’ relievers consisted of Patrick Westerlind (Auburn, Mass.), Will Krasovec (Haverhill, Mass.), and Liam Davey (Cheshire, Conn.). All three pitchers got two batters out, respectively, in that order.Â
WHAT’S NEXT
Second-seeded Endicott (24-16) hosts sixth-seeded Gordon (12-21) in game eight of the CCC Tournament tomorrow at 12 PM. If Endicott wins, the Gulls will advance to the CCC Championship Series. If Gordon wins tomorrow, the Fighting Scots will have to defeat Endicott again on the same day at approximately 3 PM to advance to the CCC Championship Series.Â
Western New England (22-18) saw its 2017 season come to a close with a 5-3 loss to Gordon in game six of the CCC Tournament, which immediately followed game four of the tournament at North Field earlier today.Â
BEVERLY – The first-seeded Endicott men’s lacrosse team captured its ninth Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Championship in program history on Saturday evening with a 12-9 victory over second-seeded Western New England at Hempstead Stadium.Â
Colin Bannon (Westport, Conn.) fueled Endicott offensively with four goals and two assists for a total of six points. Bannon’s fourth and final goal of the day clinched the CCC title for the Gulls as the senior attack juked a Golden Bears’ defender from behind the cage and buried the uncontested dagger with 1:30 left in the fourth quarter.Â
Endicott never trailed in today’s contest, but did fend off a late rally from Western New England in the second half after jumping out to an 8-4 advantage at the break. The Golden Bears pulled within two goals at the 3:28 mark of the fourth prior to Bannon’s solo effort that locked up the victory.Â
Luke Wallahan (Pleasant Hill, Calif.) also notched four goals for Endicott, while Will Clark (Burnt Hills, N.Y.) added two strikes. Cam Goodrich (Raynham, Mass.) and Kenneth Speak (Melbourne, Australia) rounded out the Gulls’ offense with one solo tally apiece.
Defensively, Grant Thompson (South Hamilton, Mass.) stopped a game-high 15 shots (one shy of tying his career-high) in the win (10-4). Shane Hughes (York Beach, Maine) also played a pivotal role in the victory, as the senior defender notched four ground balls and three caused turnovers (both game-highs at that position).
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Today marked the fifth straight year Endicott and Western New England have met in the CCC title game, and eighth time overall (2008, 2009, 2011, 2013-17).
- Endicott posted a perfect 8-0 record in regular season league play, and a 2-0 mark in the CCC Tournament to go undefeated against conference foes this season (10-0).
- The Gulls are 6-2 at home this year.
- Tommy Hughes (Coram, N.Y.) went 14-for-24 from the face-off X, and scooped up nine ground balls. Hughes’s nine ground balls helped push his program record further in that category to 742.
- Grant Garrity‘s (Duxbury, Mass.) caused turnover with 2:50 remaining in the fourth paved the way for Bannon’s game-clinching goal 1:20 later (27th of the season). Garrity finished with two caused turnovers on the day.
- Endicott went a perfect 18-for-18 on clear attempts, marking the first time the Gulls have gone 100-percent in that category all-season (16-for-17 in the CCC semis | Regular Season: 11-for-12 vs. Bowdoin, 14-for-15 vs. Curry, 12-for-13 vs. WNEU).
FOR THE FOES
- Nicholas Beauchamp (Wilbraham, Mass.) notched a hat-trick to lead the Golden Bears on offense.
- Frank Medlicott (Stanwood, Wash.) added two goals and one assist, while Hunter Cocks (Walden, N.Y.), Tim Breau (Lima, N.Y.), Oskar Djusberg (Abington, Mass.), and Keegan Dudeck (Longmeadow, Mass.) chipped in with one goal each.
- Dudek’s only tally of the day brought the Golden Bears within two with 3:28 remaining in the matchup.
- Steven Kerr (Hopkinton, Mass.) made 12 saves in the loss (8-10).
WHAT’S NEXT
Endicott (10-7) will represent the conference in the 2017 NCAA Division III Men’s Lacrosse Championship. The Gulls will learn their first round fate on Sunday, May 7 at 9 PM during the NCAA Selection Show on www.ncaa.com. Meanwhile, Western New England sees its 2017 season come to a close at 8-10 overall.Â
BEVERLY — The No. 1 seed Endicott women’s lacrosse team celebrated winning the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Championship with a 14-3 decisive victory over No. 2 Roger Williams University Saturday afternoon at a rain-soaked Hempstead Stadium in a rematch of last season’s title game.
With the win, the Gulls capped off a perfect season against conference foes (10-0) to claim their 10th conference crown in program history and first under third-year head coach Morgan Maciewicz (2017 CCC Coach of the Year).
A change of venue this go around was all the Gulls needed as sophomore midfielder Olivia Larson‘s (Cheshire, Conn.) free-position goal with 27:10 to go in the opening stanza got Endicott fired up from the start to give the Gulls an early 1-0 lead.
Roger Williams cut the deficit to 2-1 on the first of Kaelin Hogan’s (Bethel, Conn.) team-leading two strikes of the day at the 22:39 mark, and that’s as close as the Hawks would get the rest of the way.
Endicott dominated on the draw (15-4), giving the Gulls the opportunity to possess the ball longer and be lethal on the attack.
Six straight goals from Endicott to close out the first half (up 10-2) and three more tallies to begin the second half turned a narrow 4-2 edge into a 13-2 cushion and the Gulls never looked back as a running clock helped speed up the process of getting to storm the field in celebration.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Endicott leads the all-time series, 20-4 (14-1 at home) against Roger Williams.
- Endicott is now 5-1 all-time in the CCC Championship against the Hawks.
- Sophomore goalie Bella Rino (Northborough, Mass.) improved to 10-1 in goal as she made eight saves and allowed three or fewer goals for the fourth time this season while earning the start.
- Senior midfielder Emily Whitney (Rye, N.H.) scored a game-high four goals to go along with three assists for a game-best seven points for her third game this season racking up a seven-spot.
- Senior attack Meghan Lennon‘s (Canton, Mass.) six points on three goals and three assists brings her season total to 82 points, which ranks her 10th in program history for most points in a single season as she is now just three goals away from the coveted 100th career goal milestone.
- Freshman attack Meghan Dutchyshyn (Cheshire, Conn.) also scored a hat trick today for the eighth time in her rookie campaign notching at least three goals in a game.
- The Gulls made their 13th appearance in the conference title game after having qualified for the conference tournament each in the past 14 consecutive years, and 18 of the 22 years since Endicott became NCAA Division III varsity program in 1996.
- The Gulls won nine straight conference championships from 2006-2014 and returned to the CCC Championship game last year after having its streak of 10-straight title game appearances halted in 2015. However, their quest for raising a banner came up short as they fell to Roger Williams, 16-7, in Bristol, R.I. for the Hawks’ first-ever women’s lacrosse title in 2016.
FOR THE FOES
- The Hawks are 1-6 in the CCC Championship dating back to the 2003 season.
- Senior goalkeeper Kimberly Bolk (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.) stopped seven shots, but dropped to 9-2 on the season in goal.
- Hogan led the Hawks offensively with two goals and one assist.
- Sophomore midfielder Emily Stoeppel (Brookfield, Conn.) caused a game-high three turnovers and scooped up a game-best four ground balls.
WHAT’S NEXT
No. 1 Endicott (14-4) received the conference’s automatic bid  into the NCAA DIII Women’s Lacrosse Championship. The NCAA Division III Women’s Lacrosse Selection Show is slated for Sunday, May 7th at 9:30 p.m. (EST) Watch live here.
No. 2 Roger Williams (13-4) likely saw its season come to an end, unless the Hawks get an at-large selection
