The Muhlenberg women's lacrosse team fought hard but could not recover from an early deficit in its 15-7 defeat in the Centennial Conference semifinals against Franklin & Marshall.
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The Diplomats (15-4), ranked 10th in Division III, jumped out to a 3-0 advantage in the first nine minutes. The Mules stopped the F&M run with a goal of their own but never got closer than two goals down the rest of the game. With the loss, Muhlenberg moves to 13-4, tied for the most wins in a season in program history.
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Sophomore
Amanda Tullo recorded her eighth hat trick of the season to lead the Mules on offense. Freshman
Emma Charron and senior
Kelsey Nagle each finished with two points. Nagle now has 70 points this season and 216 in her career, including 136 career assists which is tied for the seventh most in CC history.
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Junior
Jordy Bonvini converted a free-position goal, her 63rd goal this season, to put the Mules on the board after F&M opened with three straight scores. The Mules then put up a tough defensive front until the Diplomats scored twice late in the period to take a 5-1 lead into halftime.
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The Mules started the second half with a quick strike from Tullo. The Diplomats scored next but Muhlenberg answered right back when Nagle fed Charron with an inside pass and the freshman found the back of the net to make it 6-3.
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F&M rattled off the next three scores before Tullo spun around her defender and finished the ensuing shot for her second goal. The Diplomats tallied the next two goals, but Muhlenberg again responded with goals of its own from Tullo and Nagle, making it 11-6 with less than 10 minutes remaining. The Mules, however, could not get closer than the five goal deficit as F&M scored four more times to pull away.
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Charron bounced in her second goal of the game off an assist from senior
Nora Fisher to represent Muhlenberg's final tally
(celebration pictured above).
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Senior
Sara Allison finished with six saves and a team-best two caused turnovers. Freshman
Gabriella Crivelli collected four ground balls to lead the defense while senior
Allison Murnick picked up three ground balls as well. Bonvini won eight draw controls, adding to her school single-season record of 128.
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