Fitchburg State Picked To Claim 2011-12 MASCAC Men’s Ice Hockey Championship

Falcons selected to defend 2010-11 MASCAC Championship crown

FITCHBURG, Mass. (November 1, 2011) – The Falcons of Fitchburg State University are the pre-season pick to win the 2011-12 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Men’s Ice Hockey championship in a vote of the league’s coaches.

The MASCAC is comprised of seven institutions that sponsor the sport of men’s ice hockey, including affiliate members UMass Dartmouth and Plymouth State. Beginning this year, the MASCAC will be eligible to receive an automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Men’s Ice Hockey Championships, as the winner of the conference championship tournament will receive that berth.

Fitchburg State, the defending MASCAC tournament champion, captured four first place votes to amass 46 points and eke out Salem State for the top spot on the poll, as the Vikings collected the other three first place votes to record 45 points. Defending conference regular season champion UMass Dartmouth is next in third place with 33 points, while Plymouth State and Westfield State follow in fourth and fifth place with 28 and 20 points, respectively. Worcester State is next in sixth place with 15 points, while Framingham State finished in seventh place in the poll with nine points.

The Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference, the nation’s first Division III men’s and women’s playing conference, has a rich and storied tradition of competitive success while celebrating excellence in the classroom. MASCAC member schools include Bridgewater State University, Fitchburg State University, Framingham State University, MCLA, Massachusetts Maritime Academy, Salem State University, Westfield State University and Worcester State University. Two other institutions, the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and Plymouth State University, are affiliate members of the conference in the sport of men’s ice hockey.