women’s hoops puts win in the bank

Junior Erin McSherry continued her scoring surge with 10 points against Washington. She has reached double figures in three of the last four games after scoring 10 or more in two of her first 52 career games.

When the other team banks in a three-pointer, it can be a sign that it’s not going to be your game, but for the Muhlenberg women’s basketball team, it’s just another day at the office.

The Mules survived a banked-in three – the fifth against them in the last seven games – in an 83-57 home win against Washington. The victory kept the Shorewomen winless all-time at Memorial Hall and put Muhlenberg back to within a game of first place in the Centennial Conference, thanks to Dickinson’s last-second loss at Johns Hopkins.

Leading by only two points at halftime, the Mules (13-5, 8-3) opened the second half with an 11-3 run to extend their lead to double digits. Washington’s lone points in that stretch came on a three-ball that kissed off the glass.

“We all get that luck once in a while,” joked sophomore Alexis Bates. “It happens.”

Luck had nothing to do with Muhlenberg’s second half. The Mules outscored the Shorewomen (7-10, 4-6) by a 55-31 margin in the last 20 minutes, shooting 65.7 percent from the field. Muhlenberg missed 13 shots in the second half and got the offensive rebound on nine.

Freshman Kelly McKeon stole

Wrestling Drops Two The Muhlenberg wrestling team lost to host Stevens (24-18) and No. 19 Kings Point (38-5) in a pair of Centennial Conference matches. Junior Matt Horn and senior Joe Tartar both went 2-0 on the day. Click for box scores.

the opening pass of the second half and drove in for a layup. After another Washington turnover, Bates converted a pass from junior Kaitlin Strumph for a three-point play.

“We weren’t timid; we wanted the ball,” said Bates, who scored 12 of her 16 points in the second half and was 7-of-8 from the field for the game. “Coach always tells us that you can’t be afraid to win. You can’t go out there just trying not to lose.”

Advice from the coach wasn’t the only reason for the strong finish after a flat first half in which the Mules never led by more than five points.

“There was a great halftime speech by one of our teammates,” said Bates. “It really put things in perspective and put a fire under our butts.”

Junior Lauren Boyle led all scorers with 21 points, topping the 20-point mark for the sixth time this season. Freshman Sheila Cook scored eight points and pulled down a game-high eight rebounds, while classmate Kelly McKeon dished out eight assists with only one turnover (and that came on the first possession of the game).
Click for box score.