Men’s and women’s lacrosse lose season openers

In the past week, Muhlenberg’s men’s and women’s lacrosse teams opened their seasons. Unfortunately, both squads are winless through the first few games, but there were certainly positive points in each game the teams look to build on to get rolling in the right direction.

The men’s roster faced the Susquehanna University River Hawks on Wednesday, Feb. 22 at Scotty Wood Stadium. The Mules led 2-1 after the first quarter, in a game that looked like it was going to be a low scoring affair. Captain Brad D’Alessandro ‘17 scored both of the first two goals, which were unassisted. The River Hawks took a 3-2 lead into half time, as they netted two goals of their own and held the Mules scoreless during the second quarter. After halftime, Susquehanna took a convincing lead in the third, making the score 9-3. The lone Muhlenberg goal of the quarter was strung together by a pair of freshman. Declan Moylan ‘20 was credited with the assist and Paul Krueger ‘20 put the ball in the back of the net for the Mules. The final score was 12-4, as Joey Hess ‘18 was also able to score an unassisted goal in the fourth quarter. The Mules recorded more penalties than the River Hawks 9-2, including six in the third quarter, which is something the team needs to improve.

The men also faced off against Scranton three days later and came up short again. The Mules jumped out to a quick lead after scoring the first two goals of the game, one by Niko Del Moro ‘18 and the other by Moylan. Soon thereafter, Scranton scored the next five goals before Moylan scored his second of the game. Also scoring goals were D’Alessandro and Brandon Miller ‘19 in the third and fourth quarters, respectively. Frankie Feaster ‘20 had a 68 percent faceoff percentage, winning 15 of the 22 he saw. Feaster took all of the faceoffs for the Mules against Scranton. The Mules only were charged with two penalties this game, improving from their Susquehanna matchup. The final score of the Scranton game was 14-5.

The women have only played their season opener, requiring them to travel to Grantham, Pa. to take on Messiah. Despite the loss by the score of 17-9, two Mules ended the game with hat-tricks. Captain Kelsey Nagle ‘17 and Jordy Bonvini ‘18 both scored three goals. The Mules scored about a minute and a half into the game to take the early advantage, but Messiah went on a seven goal tear. At halftime, the Mules were down 10-2.

The second half was a lot more competitive, as the teams both scored seven goals each. Stephanie D’Ascoli ‘17 added two goals for the Mules and Amanda Tullo ‘19 netted one goal. Captain Sara Allison ‘17 played all 60 minutes in goal for the Mules.

Both teams look to improve upon their opening efforts in their next few games. After their home opener, the team will hit the road and travel to Hilton Head, South Carolina to play Emmanuel during spring break. Conference play for the women starts up on Mar. 25th against Bryn Mawr. The men will host Fairleigh Dickinson University on Friday Mar. 3 and then head to Newport News, Virginia over Muhlenberg’s spring recess to play Matte Cup rival Moravian on Wednesday, Mar. 8. The men’s conference play begins Mar. 29 against Haverford.