AIC hockey hopes to continue its recent winning ways in the Atlantic Hockey playoffs at RIT.
It’s down to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Championship, with Amherst College hosting one of four sectionals Friday and Saturday nights at LeFrak Gymnasium.
The four sectional teams have a combined record of 101-12.
The Lord Jeffs (28-1) will face Tufts (25-2) Friday at 8. In the first game at 6, Messiah College (25-4) meets Widener (23-5).
Amherst, ranked sixth in the nation, defeated Farmingdale and the University of New England to advance. Bridget Crowley of Hampden was sensational in the post in those contests, averaging 17.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 3.5 blocks.
Tufts bounced back from being upset by Bowdoin in the first round of the NESCAC tournament, and registered easy wins over St. Lawrence and No. 16 Babson in NCAA play last weekend.
No. 19 Messiah is making its 14th straight appearance in the NCAA tournament. Widener set a school record with 23 wins, and reached the sectional for the first time.
Friday’s winners advance to the sectional final Saturday night at 7:30.
The Amherst (25-2) men host Plattsburgh (20-8) in an NCAA tournament second-round game Saturday at 4 p.m.
AIC: The hockey team, 7-1-3 in its last 11 games, opens its best-of -three first round Atlantic Hockey Championship play Friday night at RIT. During that surge, goaltender Ben Meisner has produced a 1.55 goals against average, and a .955 save percentage.
The Yellow Jackets (12-15-6, 9-12-6) are seeded ninth while RIT (12-16-3, 10-12-3) is eighth.
AIC senior forward Adam Pleskach leads the team in scoring for the fourth straight season with 15 goals and 17 assists for 32 points.
The teams met November 2-3 at the Olympia in West Springfield. The first game ended in a 2-2 tie, RIT won the second 3-0.
WESTFIELD STATE: Sophomore Targie Gervais Of Springfield is participating in the NCAA Division III track and field championships this weekend at North Central College in Naperville, Ill.
Gervais, a Central High School graduate, is making her second appearance in the nationals, and will compete in the 60-meter women’s championships.
As a freshman, she earned All-America honors by placing seventh in the 100-meter dash at the 2011 outdoor event. She did not compete in the 2011-12 academic year.
Gervais is ranked second in the 60-meter with a school record time of 7.66 seconds. Buffalo State senior Sasha Henry is seeded first (7.63).
SMITH: Jenika Parson qualified for the NCAA Division III National Diving Championship to be held March 20-23 in Shenandoah, Texas. Parson finished seventh overall in the regional last weekend at Springfield College with a score of 427.50 on 11 dives.
AWAY AT SCHOOL: Southern Connecticut State University junior Sarah Brochu of Wilbraham has been selected to the Northeast-10 Conference Women’s Soccer All-Academic Team.
Brochu, a three-time All-Conference selection, anchored a defense that allowed only 17 goals while contributing two goals and two assists on offense. To qualify for the All-Academic Team, a player must have participated in at least half the team’s matches, achieved a grade point average of 3.3 or above, and completed at least one year at her current school.