The Westfield State and Elms women's basketball teams meet Saturday afternoon at 1 at Picknelly Arena in Chicopee.
Overcoming an onslaught of shots on goal for four years, Elms College field hockey goalkeeper Alexandra Bonavita made it to the school record book.
The senior from Agawam finished her collegiate career with 784 saves, breaking a mark of 752 that had held up since 1997.
With the help of Bonavita, the field hockey squad improved to 8-12 last season under second-year head coach Kim Cosenza after registering only five wins over the previous three years.
Bonavita was the New England Collegiate Conference goalkeeper of the year the past two seasons, and All-NECC first team the last three years.
But the athletic career of the nursing major is not over. She is a second baseman on the softball team, and will play again this spring.
Also at Elms, the women’s basketball team (2-5) is home Saturday at 1 p.m. against Westfield State (5-4).
The Owls appear to be formidable. They have won two of their last three, dropping a tough 55-51 decision Tuesday to UMass-Boston. Sophomore Gabby Felix, a High School of Commerce graduate, had 11 points and seven rebounds for Westfield, which got its only five points off the bench from junior Tania Ortiz of Holyoke.
Felix is averaging team highs in points (13.3) and rebounds (8.6). Feisty sophomore guard Jen Ashton of Beverly is next in scoring with 12.2 points, and is hitting 40.2 percent from the field to go along with 4.7 rebounds per game.
Eight of the 15 players on the Westfield roster are from Western Massachusetts.
The Owls have an interesting home contest with Smith College Jan. 2. The Pioneers enter the holiday break with a record of 8-1, and 4-0 in the NEWMAC. The only loss was at RPI 66-63.
Smith sophomore Lauren Weston of Northampton, an engineering major who transferred from the University of New Hampshire, went 4 for 4 from the field, and posted a season-high eight points in only 11 minutes in the last outing, a 77-46 win over MCLA.
Elms sophomore JC Pickett of Chicopee was named the NECC rookie of the week after pouring in 23 points in a 70-49 win over Becker.
Sophomore Denisha Parks of Chicopee made the conference weekly honor roll with 28 points and 11 rebounds in a loss to Regis.
Meanwhile, the Elms men’s basketball team is at Castleton Saturday.
Off the court and field, the Elms athletic department, led by the Student Athlete Advisory Committee, raised over $1,000 for the Western Massachusetts Food Bank, which serviced greater than 37,500 people last year. The cross country, field hockey, and women’s basketball teams led the initiative.
At Westfield State, women’s indoor track and field sophomore Targie Jervais of Springfield finished fifth in the 200-meters, and set a school record in the 55-meter (7.29 seconds) while ending in sixth place at the Harvard Open. Those performances put her on the MASCAC weekly women’s indoor track and field honor roll.
AWAY AT SCHOOL: Bridgewater State junior women’s basketball guard Jenna Williamson of Ludlow earned a spot on the Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference weekly honor roll. Williams scored 23 points in a 67-66 defeat to No. 10 Tufts.