2008 Woodie Awards
Men's Lacrosse playoff push falls just short
Chris Frusci
Issue date: 4/19/07 Section: Sports
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The end of the season has been somewhat of a disappointment for the Men's Lacrosse Team as they failed to reach the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season since they joined Division III in 2003. "It has been our goal since the end of last season," said junior attackman Mickey Norton. "It is very disappointing when you cannot achieve your team goal."
The Mules' playoff hopes were alive up until their game on Apr. 7 against Franklin & Marshall. At that point, they would have been guaranteed a playoff spot if they won the last four Conference games and finished with a Conference mark of 5-3.
However, Franklin & Marshall had different plans, almost completely dissipating the Mules' playoff hopes at Scotty Wood Stadium where they defeated the Mules 12-7. The Diplomats wanted to especially seek revenge because Muhlenberg defeated them last year in what was their first Centennial Conference win since the program started in 2003. Franklin & Marshall jumped out to a 6-0 lead and never looked back as the Mules' closest deficit after that was three goals. Many of the Diplomats' goals came on extra man opportunities, a situation where Muhlenberg has had some trouble with all season long, despite the strong play from the defense otherwise. Norton led all scorers for the Mules with five points (two goals, three assists) while junior midfielder Kyle Farris added four points (three goals, one assist).
At this point, they headed into Dickinson College on Apr. 11 knowing that their playoff chances were extremely slim but still wanting to make a statement. "We have never beaten Dickinson before so we were still very much focused heading into it," said junior midfielder Mike Brown. The Mules needed to win out and have a lot of outside help in order to crack the last playoff spot. A very talented Dickinson team erased that confusion early on when they jumped out to a 6-0 lead, which later amounted to an 11-3 final. The Mules were held in check as they were out shot 30 to 18 and only were able to score once in the first half. Dickinson is currently ranked second in the Conference and has had some votes for top-25 in the country.
The Mules' playoff hopes were alive up until their game on Apr. 7 against Franklin & Marshall. At that point, they would have been guaranteed a playoff spot if they won the last four Conference games and finished with a Conference mark of 5-3.
However, Franklin & Marshall had different plans, almost completely dissipating the Mules' playoff hopes at Scotty Wood Stadium where they defeated the Mules 12-7. The Diplomats wanted to especially seek revenge because Muhlenberg defeated them last year in what was their first Centennial Conference win since the program started in 2003. Franklin & Marshall jumped out to a 6-0 lead and never looked back as the Mules' closest deficit after that was three goals. Many of the Diplomats' goals came on extra man opportunities, a situation where Muhlenberg has had some trouble with all season long, despite the strong play from the defense otherwise. Norton led all scorers for the Mules with five points (two goals, three assists) while junior midfielder Kyle Farris added four points (three goals, one assist).
At this point, they headed into Dickinson College on Apr. 11 knowing that their playoff chances were extremely slim but still wanting to make a statement. "We have never beaten Dickinson before so we were still very much focused heading into it," said junior midfielder Mike Brown. The Mules needed to win out and have a lot of outside help in order to crack the last playoff spot. A very talented Dickinson team erased that confusion early on when they jumped out to a 6-0 lead, which later amounted to an 11-3 final. The Mules were held in check as they were out shot 30 to 18 and only were able to score once in the first half. Dickinson is currently ranked second in the Conference and has had some votes for top-25 in the country.