By Jim Fenton
BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Here's a look at the week ahead (Feb. 24-March 2) for the Bridgewater State University athletics teams:
TUESDAY
MEN'S BASKETBALL, at Framingham State, 6:00 PM: The fifth-seeded Bears play at the fourth-seeded Rams in the quarterfinal round of the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament.
The teams split the season series, BSU winning at home, 85-66, and losing on the road, 78-75.
This marks the first tourney matchup between the two teams since Feb. 19, 2019 when BSU won in the quarterfinal round, 101-84.
WEDNESDAY
WOMEN'S LACROSSE, at UMass Dartmouth, 4:00 PM: The Bears (2-0) play their third straight road game to open the season, traveling to Cressy Field.
Bridgewater holds a 14-1 lead in the all-time series. The two teams, however, have not met since March 26, 2018 when the Bears defeated the Corsairs for the sixth straight time, 15-6.
This will be the season opener for UMass Dartmouth, which was 9-8 last year.
THURSDAY
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL, at home, vs. TBD, 6:00 PM: The top-seeded Bears (17-6) open the MASCAC tournament with a semifinal-round game at the Tinsley Center.
The opponent will be determined after a pair of quarterfinal-round games on Tuesday night.
BSU has won 10 straight games entering the postseason. The Bears lost in the MASCAC final at Framingham State last season.
FRIDAY
MEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD, at the Division III New England Championships, 9:00 AM: The Bears open the two-day meet at The Track at New Balance in Boston.
BSU was 14th with 16 points last season as Corey Stalters (Norton, Mass.) finished third in the shot put.
WOMEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD, at the Division III New England Championships, 9:00 AM: BSU finished ninth with 32.5 points a year ago.
The Bears received All-New England performances from Alison McDonough (Halifax, Mass.), second in the 60-meter hurdles, Jailene Escalera (Rockland, Mass.), third in the 200 and fourth in the 60, Kiara Abrantes (Somerset, Mass.), fourth in the 200 and eighth in the 400 and Serenity Sands (tied for fifth in the high jump).
BASEBALL, at UMass Boston, 2:30 PM: The Bears are scheduled to open the season with a game at BC High's Monan Field against the Beacons.
The teams have not met since a 7-5 BSU win at home on April 9, 2013. The Bears have not played at UMass Boston since 1994.
BSU was 26-16 with a trip to the NCAA Division III tournament last season. The Beacons went 27-16 a year ago.
MEN'S SWIMMING & DIVING, at the ECAC Open Championships, 10 AM: The Bears will have seven swimmers taking part in the meet at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.
WOMEN'S SWIMMING & DIVING, at the ECAC Open Championships, 10 AM: Seven women will be at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., for the three-day event.
WOMEN'S DIVING, at the Division III Northeast/North Regional, 5:00 PM: BSU junior Cailey Simard (Haverhill, Mass.) takes part in the regional for a third straight year.
This season's competition is being hosted by Springfield College.
WOMEN'S LACROSSE, at home, University of New England, 4:00 PM: The Bears play their home opener at Mazzaferro Field.
Bridgewater holds an 8-4 lead in the all-time series including a 3-2 mark at home. The two teams first met back in 2008.
Last season, the Bears posted a 13-8 win up in Biddeford, Maine.
This will be the Black History Month Game hosted by BSU.
SATURDAY
MEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD, at the Division III New England Championships, 9:00 AM: The Bears conclude the New England meet in Boston.
WOMEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD, at the Division III New England Championships, 9:00 AM: The second day of the New England meet takes place in Boston.
WOMEN'S DIVING, at the Division III Northeast/North Regional, 3:00 PM: Cailey Simard, a BSU junior, finishes the regional competition, looking for a trip to the NCAAs in North Carolina.
MEN'S SWIMMING & DIVING, at the ECAC Open Championships, 10 AM: The second day of the competition takes place with the preliminaries in the morning and finals at night.
WOMEN'S SWIMMING & DIVING, at the ECAC Open Championships, 10 AM: The Bears take part in the second of three days of the meet.
WRESTLING, NCAA Division III Northeast Regional, at Middletown, Conn., 11 AM: The Bears travel to Wesleyan University for the annual regional championships.
Last season, Malcolm Chrispin (Hyde Park, Mass.) went 2-2 for BSU.
EQUESTRIAN, at the Horsebarn Hill, 9:00 AM: The Bears open the spring semester part of the schedule by traveling to Storrs, Conn. for a show hosted by the University of Connecticut.
SUNDAY
WRESTLING, NCAA Division III Northeast Regional, at Middletown, Conn., 10 AM: The Bears finish the regional at Wesleyan.
MEN'S SWIMMING & DIVING, at the ECAC Open Championships, 10 AM: The three-day event at Navy finishes with a morning and evening session.
WOMEN'S SWIMMING & DIVING, at the ECAC Open Championships, 10 AM: The Bears wrap up the three-day stay at the ECACs.