The women’s lacrosse team has started their season on a positive note, sporting a 7-4 record, including a stretch in which they went 4-1, which culminated in a win against #23 Haverford in a nail-biter last week.
Although Lady Mules’ early season success does not hinge on any one factor, there are many noticeable differences from last year’s squad, including the leadership skills of the senior class and the addition of many freshmen. Additionally, the youth movement has clearly provided a spark, as the team has already matched its win total from last season. The group’s early success has some already thinking about a conference championship.
“In order to compete for a conference championship, we need to keep playing our game. We are in the heart of our conference play right now, so we need to come out strong in our next games to show the conference that we are tough contenders.” said Melissa Rudberg ‘19.
With a 2-2 record in conference play, Muhlenberg is sitting in sixth place in the Centennial Conference standings. They are only two games behind first, Washington College, who the Mules lost to this past Saturday evening. Even though the team faces an uphill battle at the moment, there are still many games to play. The team’s resilience will be tested in the upcoming weeks as they face a grueling schedule and have some ground to make up.
The team’s marked improvement has been most noteworthy in terms of their lockdown defense.
“Especially in our recent game against Haverford, our attack did a really great job moving the ball with confidence and capitalizing on the other team’s mistakes. Defensively, we have older and experienced players,” Rudberg added.
In addition to all of the refinements on the field this year, a less visible highlight of the season thus far has been the team’s unity off the turf.
“We are all really great friends on and off the field, which has improved our team dynamic,” said Rudberg.
The social aspect of team sports, while seen by many as trivial or even detrimental, is oftentimes a critical component of athletes’ success, as in a lot of cases, teammates become one another’s primary social circle.
The team will hit the road this weekend to travel to Westminster, Md., to play McDaniel on Saturday, Apr. 13 at 3 p.m., kicking off a stretch that could ultimately make or break what has been a great comeback season thus far.
