FROSTBURG, Md. – The Frostburg State Women's Soccer team is set to host Fairmont State on Sunday afternoon in the Championship Game of the Mountain East Conference Tournament.
 
How They Got Here: The Bobcats come into the game as the North Division one seed, having clinched their third straight division title with three games left to play in the regular season. FSU is riding an eight-game win streak and sports a record of 18-1-1, including a 14-1-1 MEC record, which is the best mark in the conference. FSU defeated the North's No. 4 seed Wheeling 4-0, the most goals scored and highest margin of victory of any team in the quarterfinal round, then beat South No.3 seed Charleston (WV) 1-0 in double overtime in the semifinals. 
 
The Fighting Falcons enter with an overall record of 12-3-4, including a 10-3-3 record in conference. After a slow start to the season, Fairmont went 10 games unbeaten to earn the North's two seed, finishing with the third-most points in the MEC during the regular season. In each of their tournament games thus far, the Falcons have earned a pair of dramatic 1-0 wins over Notre Dame (Ohio) in the quarterfinals and West Virginia State in the semifinals. 
 
The Matchup: Frostburg holds the season advantage over Fairmont, having won 3-0 at Bobcat Stadium on September 21, then winning again 1-0 at Duvall-Rosier Field in the final game of the regular season on October 30. The Fighting Falcons won the first two games in the series during the 2019 regular season, but the Bobcats have not lost in the previous four meetings, winning three times and drawing once. 
 
The Players: FSU is led offensively by junior Toni Fiocco-Mizer, who was an All-MEC Second Team selection and is tied for third in the MEC with 14 goals this season, while also providing five assists for 33 total points. Fiocco-Mizer also leads the country in game-winning goals with nine, having added to that tally by scoring the winner over the Golden Eagles in the semis. Aiding her in goalscoring is sophomore forward Mackenzie Alonso (seven goals, five assists), sophomore midfielder Carolyn DeSena (five goals, five assists), junior midfielder Lela Clark (All-MEC Honorable Mention, five goals, five assists), and sophomore defender Cat Smith (All-MEC Second Team, five goals). The Bobcats also boast the top defense in the MEC, having allowed just 10 goals in 20 games for a 0.50 goals against average, with 14 clean sheets on the year, all best marks in the conference. Graduate defender Abbey Dennis is the leader of the unit, having been named the MEC Co-Defensive Player of the Year and was an All-MEC First Team honoree. She is joined by sophomore Mei Homman, freshman Skylar Ehart, and Smith in front of her to protect the Frostburg goal, with the last line of defense being junior goalkeeper Ashley Bilger, who was an All-MEC Honorable Mention selection. Additionally in the postseason awards, FSU's midfield features junior Hannah Thompson, an All-MEC First Team selection, and freshman Carly Gillette, who earned a spot on the All-MEC Freshman Team.
 
Fairmont's offense is led by All-MEC First Team junior forward Kiera Kuzinski, who leads the MEC with 17 goals scored, which is also a top-10 mark in all of Division II. Joining her in goalscoring efforts is freshman forward Alejandra Puetro Sorto (seven goals, six assists), as she was named to both the All-MEC Second Team and the All-Freshman Team. Junior forward Jessica Schneider is the team's leader in assists with seven, while senior midfielder Mackenze Gillespie earned All-MEC Second Team, scoring four goals in the process. The Falcons' defense was the second-best in the conference, with 13 goals allowed in 19 games for a 0.68 goals against average. All-MEC First Team senior goalkeeper Taylor Kennedy led the MEC in save percentage (.850) and tied for the league lead in shutouts with seven. She is helped out by fellow First Team senior defender Ari Christiansen and sophomore defender Emily Wallon, who earned a spot as an All-MEC Honorable Mention. 
 
The Rest of the Field: The semifinal matchups decided the participants in the Championship, with each team needing late goals to advance this far. Fiocco-Mizer scored Frostburg's winner with five minutes remaining in double overtime, while Puetro Sorto found the back of the net with 13 seconds left against WVSU to set up the final. 
 
2022 MEC WOMEN'S SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIP
 
SEEDINGS
NORTH: #1 Frostburg State, #2 Fairmont State, #3 Notre Dame College, #4 Wheeling
SOUTH: #1 West Virginia St., #2 Concord, #3 Charleston, #4 Davis & Elkins
 
TUESDAY, NOV. 1 - QUARTERFINALS
#4N Wheeling at #1N Frostburg State – 0-4 Frostburg State advances
#3S Charleston at #2S Concord – 2-1 Charleston advances
#4S Davis & Elkins at #1S West Virginia St. – 0-2 West Virginia St. advances
#3N Notre Dame at #2N Fairmont State – 0-1 Fairmont State advances
 
FRIDAY, NOV. 4 - SEMIFINALS
#3S Charleston at #1N Frostburg State – 0-1 Frostburg State advances
#2N Fairmont State at #1S West Virginia St. – 1-0 Fairmont State advances
 
SUNDAY, NOV. 6 - CHAMPIONSHIP
#2N Fairmont State at #1N Frostburg State - 1 p.m.

* at highest seed
All game times subject to change at MEC discretion