BRISTOL, R.I. – This weekend, three Roger Williams University athletic teams have their sights set on the Commonwealth Coast Conference Championship, with Men's Tennis, Softball, and Women's Lacrosse all seeking the conference title.
 
The #1 seed Men's Tennis will be hosting #2 Nichols College at 2:00 p.m., while top-seeded Women's Lacrosse welcomes #2 Endicott at 12:00 p.m. #5 Softball will face #1 Western New England at 11:00 a.m. for the right to play #3 Salve Regina at 1:00 p.m. A win for the Hawks in both games will force a second game against the Seahawks, as Salve Regina has not lost yet in the double-elimination tournament.
 
Men's Tennis
 
Men's Tennis earned its way to the CCC Championship Match after going 7-1 in CCC play in the regular season and claiming the top seed in the tournament. After earning a first round bye, the Hawks squeezed past #4 seed Gordon College with a 5-4 win in the semifinal round. The Hawks will make their eighth consecutive appearance in the conference championship, including their sixth straight against Nichols.
 
Nichols came into the CCC Tournament as the #2 seed, also finishing at 7-1 in the conference but losing the head-to-head tie-breaker with RWU. The Bison earned a bye to the CCC Semifinals, where they faced #3 Endicott College. Nichols defeated Endicott 5-3 for their sixth straight CCC Championship Match berth. The Bison have won the last four CCC Championships, with RWU looking to halt that streak this weekend.
 
Women's Lacrosse
 
Women's Lacrosse finished the regular season on top of the CCC, notching their first-ever undefeated regular season in conference play (8-0) and picking up a bye into the CCC Semifinals against #4 Western New England. In the semifinals, the Hawks rallied from a four-goal deficit in the second half to force overtime and claim a 12-11 victory over the Golden Bears. This marks the third straight appearance for RWU in the conference championship game and the Hawks' sixth appearance overall.
 
Endicott went 6-2 in the Commonwealth Coast Conference, picking up the #2 seed and a first-round bye. The Gulls took down the #3 seed University of New England 14-10 in the CCC Semifinals for a date with RWU in the championship. This will be Endicott 11^th appearance in the CCC Championship, with a 9-1 record in title games.
 
Softball
 
Softball concluded the regular season at 12-6 in the CCC, with a tight race for seeding pushing the Hawks to the #5 seed and sending them to the single-elimination round. Against #8 Gordon, RWU rolled to a five-inning 8-0 win and into the double-elimination round. After pushing the game back a day due to rain, the Hawks began with a 3-2 nine-inning win over #4 University of New England to advance against top-seeded Western New England. A pitching duel ensued, with the Golden Bears slipping past the Hawks with a 1-0 win.
 
On Thursday, the Hawks eliminated #6 Eastern Nazarene with a 7-2 win to face off against #2 Endicott. RWU came back from three runs down in the top of the seventh with four runs and come home with a 6-5 win over the Gulls. The Hawks are looking for their first Commonwealth Coast Conference Championship since 2013.
 
Western New England, the reigning CCC Champion, went 15-3 in the regular season to earn the top seed in the conference tournament. The Golden Bears began tournament play with a 1-0 ten-inning win over RWU but fell 7-0 to #3 Salve Regina University on Thursday. The Seahawks earned the #3 seed after going 14-4 in CCC play in the regular season. Salve is the only undefeated team in the tournament at 3-0 with wins over #6 Eastern Nazarene (8-0, 5 inn.), #2 Endicott (5-4), and #1 Western New England (7-0). The Seahawks are looking for their first CCC title since 1999.
 
The entire athletic department and University community would like to wish the best of luck to all our teams competing.