2011 NECC Softball Championship Pairings Announced

ATTLEBORO, Mass.—Lesley University has claimed the top seed for the 2011 New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Softball Championship, which begins with quarterfinal matchups on campus sites the afternoon of Tuesday, May 3rd  .  The Lynx (26-6 overall) earned the top spot in the upcoming NECC tournament after posting a perfect 16-0 conference record. 

Elms College (20-12 overall) claimed the #2 seed going 14-2 in conference play.

Mitchell College (13-17 overall, 10-6 NECC) has earned the #3 seed, while Becker College (14-20 overall, 10-6 NECC) will be the #4 seed.  Because the Mariners and the Hawks tied for third in conference play the NECC tie-breaker was used. Mitchell swept Becker in head-to-head  action on April 20th 4-2 and 12-5.

Newbury College (9-22) finished with a 9-7 conference record earning the #5 seed.

Both Daniel Webster College (7-17) and Bay Path College (11-17) tied for 6th place with a 5-11 NECC record. NECC tiebreaker procedures were used to determine the #6 and final seed. In the first criteria of head-to-head competition Daniel Webster and Bay Path split. The next criterion used compared record among higher ranked teams in conference. Both teams lost to Lesley and Elms,  while Daniel Webster split with Mitchell on April 3rd  winning 10-4  and losing 1-0. Bay Path lost both contests.

Daniel Webster earned the final spot after taking the third criterion in the tiebreaker procedures.

In quarterfinal-round action on Tuesday, May 3, #3 Mitchell will host #6 Daniel Webster in New London, Conn. at 4:00 p.m., while #4 Becker will host #5 Newbury in Leicester, Mass. at 4:00 p.m.

The semifinal and final rounds will be hosted by top-seeded Lesley on Friday, May 6, Saturday, May 7 and possibly Sunday, May 8 in Boston, Mass. The location of the tournament field will be on the campus of UMass Boston.

In Friday's semifinals, Lesley will face the winner of the Becker/Newbury quarterfinal at 10:00 a.m., while Elms will meet the winner of the Mitchell-Daniel Webster quarterfinal at 12:00 p.m. Game five will have the two losing teams facing off at 2:00 p.m. and the winning teams finishing off the day at a 4:00 p.m. start time.

Saturday's action will begin at noon with the winner of game five facing the loser of game six. The championship game -- game eight -- will take place at 2:00 p.m. with the winners of game six and seven meeting.

2011 NECC SOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE

Quarterfinals • Tuesday, May 3

Game 1-#6 Daniel Webster (7-17, 5-11) at #3 Mitchell (13-17, 10-6), 4:00 p.m.

Game 2-#5 Newbury (9-22, 9-7) at #4 Becker (14-20, 10-6), 4:00 p.m.


Semifinals • Friday, May 6 (Hosted by Lesley at UMass Boston)

Game 3-Winner of #4/#5 at #1 Lesley (26-6, 16-0), 10:00 a.m.

Game 4-Winner of #3/#6 vs. #2 Elms (20-12, 14-2), 12:00 p.m.

Game 5-Loser of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4, 2:00 p.m.

Game 6-Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4, 4:00 p.m.


Semifinals and Championship Game • Saturday, May 7 (Hosted by Lesley at UMass Boston)

Game 7-Winner of Game 5 vs. Loser of Game 6, 12:00 p.m.

Game 8-Winner of Game 6 vs. Winner of  Game 7, 2:00 p.m.


Championship Game • Sunday, May 8 (Hosted by Lesley at UMass Boston)

Game 9 (If Necessary), 1:00 p.m.