2008 Woodie Awards
Mules remain Conference contenders
Josh Goldstein
Issue date: 1/31/08 Section: Sports
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After losing their game against Franklin & Marshall, the Mules returned home to play the Fords from Haverford. Two minutes into the game, the Mules took the lead and never looked back. The lead got as big as 23 in the first half and they ended the half up 43-22. The first-half stars were junior wing Lauren Boyle, who scored 7 points and had 5 assists, and junior center Erin McSherry, who had 7 points and 8 rebounds.
The second half was more of the same as the Mules increased their lead to more than 30 and won the game by 32, 72-40. The win was a complete team performance as the Mules had 7 members score 5 points or more, but no one scored in double digits. The Mules' victory reestablished them as the second place team in the Conference and set them up with a road date against the Dickinson Red Devils.
On Thurs. the Mules boarded a bus to Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Muhlenberg came into the game knowing that Dickinson has a stout defense and that points could be hard to come by. This was the case as about 9 minutes into the game, the teams had combined for a total of 23 points and the Mules had a one-point lead, 12-11. However, this would be their last lead of the game as Dickinson hit a three to give them a 14-12 lead. Dickinson's defense stayed strong as their offense kicked in, and the Mules were able to muster just 7 points in the rest of the first half and trailed by as many as 14 before cutting the deficit to 10 (29-19) at the end of the first half.
The second half was not good to the Mules as their offense continued to struggle and Dickinson found ways to score. Dickinson's lead was as large as 27 (55-28) with 8:36 remaining in the game. The Mules would end up pulling within 15 but never had a chance after falling behind in the first half and lost 64-49. Freshman point guard Kelly Mckeon scored 11 points and McSherry led the Mules with 12, but no one else really contributed to the offense as the Mules shot just 35% from the floor, compared to the Red Devils who shot 47%. The Mules had to forget right away the tough loss because the Shorewomen of Washington College were coming to Memorial Hall.
Upon returning to Allentown, the Mules needed a win to secure their spot among the top teams of the Conference. The Mules dominated the first half of play, but at halftime the Mules found themselves only up 2 points. However, the second half saw the return of a potent Mules offense that put up 55 points to help them cruise to a 63-57 victory. Muhlenberg was led by Boyle with 21 points and also got double-digit scoring out of sophomore Alexis Bates and McScherry, who finished with 16 and 10 points respectively. McKeon did a nice job distributing with 8 assists and freshman Sheila Cook grabbed 8 rebounds to go along with her 8 points.
This was a solid win for the Mules who now stand at 13-5 and have an 8-3 Conference record, tying McDaniel in third place behind Dickinson and Ursinus. The Mules went 4-2 over their back-to-back three-game weeks which is very impressive; they can reclaim the second spot in the Conference with two road wins this week against McDaniel and Ursinus. If the girls are able to sweep or get a split this week, they will do themselves a big favor in their drive towards the Conference playoffs.