Week Ahead: Monday, Sept. 15 to Sunday, Sept. 21

By Jim Fenton

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Here's a look at the week ahead (Sept. 15-21) for the Bridgewater State University athletics teams:

TUESDAY

MEN'S SOCCER, at Wheaton College, 4:00 PM: The Bears (2-3) seek to end a two-game losing streak when they travel to Keefe Field in Norton, Mass., to face the Lyons.

Wheaton owns a 23-3-3 record against BSU dating back to 1992. The last Bears' win in the series was in 2015, 2-0.

The Lyons are off to a 4-0-1 start with three wins in a row.

FIELD HOCKEY, at Fitchburg State, 7:00 PM: BSU plays the Falcons at Elliot Field in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference opener.

The Bears lost twice to Fitchburg State, 5-0 and 4-2, in the regular season before defeating the Falcons, 1-0, in the MASCAC semifinal round last year.

Fitchburg State is 3-2 this season.

WEDNESDAY

WOMEN'S TENNIS, at home, Wheaton College, 3:30 PM: The Bears and Lyons meet for the first time.

BSU is 2-2 while Wheaton is 0-1, losing to Roger Williams.

VOLLEYBALL, at home, Fisher College, 6:00 PM: The Bears lost to Fisher, 3-0, last season at Mount Holyoke College.

BSU is 5-2 while Fisher, a member of the Continental Athletic Conference, is 4-1.

WOMEN'S SOCCER, at home, MIT, 7:00: The Bears host the Engineers at Mazzaferro Field.

MIT (5-1) was ranked No. 6 in the national Division III poll last week. The Engineers were handed their first loss by Brandeis, 2-1, over the weekend.

BSU is off to a 2-3 start, losing all three non-conference games. The Bears are 9-12-2 against MIT, including a 2-1 loss in Cambridge in 2023.

FRIDAY

FIELD HOCKEY, Salem State, 7:00 PM: The Bears swept the season series from the Vikings in 2024, 1-0 and 2-1.

Salem State is 1-2 this season with an overtime win over Rivier.

MEN'S SOCCER, at the Mass. College of Liberal Arts, 7:00 PM: BSU travels to North Adams, Mass for its second MASCAC game of the season.

The Bears defeated the Trailblazers (2-3, 1-0 MASCAC) at home last season, 6-2.

SATURDAY

MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY, at the UMass Dartmouth Invitational, 11:15 AM: The Bears take part in the Corsairs' 52nd annual invitational, which includes teams from Divisions I-III.

BSU's Kevin McBirney was 51st out of 342 runners and 11th among Division III runners last season.

WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY, at the UMass Dartmouth Invitational, Noon: BSU's Naomi Cass was the top Division III finisher at the invitational last season and 19th in a field of 345.

WOMEN'S TENNIS, at home, Rhode Island College, Noon: The Bears end a stretch of six straight home matches to begin the season.

BSU is 2-2, including 1-0 in the Little East, while the Anchorwomen are 2-0 with wins over Hartford and Suffolk.

RIC defeated the Bears twice last season, including a 5-0 decision in the semifinal round of the Little East tourney.

FOOTBALL, at home, Plymouth State, Noon: The Bears and Panthers meet for the 39th time with Plymouth State holding a 20-17-1 advantage since 1974.

BSU (1-1, 1-0 MASCAC) lost in New Hampshire a year ago, 17-14. The Panthers are 2-0 with wins over New England College and Worcester State in overtime, scoring 49 and 47 points.

WOMEN'S SOCCER, at home, Mass. College of Liberal Arts, 4:30 PM: The Bears defeated the Trailblazers, 8-0, last season to clinch their second straight MASCAC regular-season title.

MCLA begins the week 1-3, 1-0 in the MASCAC with a 4-1 win over Framingham State.