The win was the 300th for Moravian head coach Mary Beth Spirk, who now has a career record of 300-149 in 17 seasons at the Bethlehem school. Moravian improved to 11-6 on the season while Muhlenberg fell to 12-4 with its fourth loss in its last five contests.
Moravian trailed just once in the game after Muhlenberg senior forward Becky Richmond hit a three-pointer 12 seconds into the game. The Greyhounds would take a 4-3 lead with 18:36 remaining in the first half and never trail again. Moravian led by as many as 21 points in the first half at 38-17 while shooting 53.5 percent (23 of 43) from the floor. Muhlenberg made just 22.2 percent (eight of 36) of its field goal attempts and 78.6 percent (11 of 14) of its free throws in the first half while committing 18 turnovers.
In the second half, the Greyhounds shot 42.9 percent (nine of 24) from the field and just 65.2 percent (15 of 23) at the foul line while committing 24 of a season high 41 turnovers. The Mules improved to 36.5 percent (19 of 52) from the field in the second half, but Muhlenberg would make just one of six free throw attempts after the intermission. Muhlenberg would cut Moravian's lead to 74-68 with 6:25 remaining in the game, however, the Greyhounds made seven free throws in the final six minutes to seal the victory.
Berlin finished with a career best 20 points to lead four Moravian players in double figures, and Berlin added three rebounds. Sophomore forward Stephanie Seaman netted 15 points and added ten rebounds while senior guard Kim Hughes and freshman forward Kelly Applegate each scored ten points. Hughes, Moravian's leading scorer, and starting senior forward Tracie Shipman, were each held to five minutes and scoreless in the first half due to foul trouble and an injury, respectively.
Freshman forward Jenny Hackleman led the Greyhounds on the boards with 12 rebounds as Moravian held a 54-51 advantage in rebounds. Hackleman also added nine points, a career high six assists and three blocked shots while sophomore forward Lindsay Brase had nine points and four rebounds. Junior guard Jen Behagg contributed six points, six assists and four boards for the Greyhounds in the victory while freshman guard Katie Rizman had six points, four assists, four rebounds and a career high three blocked shots.
Senior center Jill Friedman led Muhlenberg with 18 points and 13 rebounds, including 13 points in the second half. Junior guard Gwen Doyle was the only other Mule to score in double figures with 11 points. Doyle added four rebounds and three assists. Sophomore forward Tiffany Kirk had nine points and five rebounds while senior center Susan Marchiano had nine points.
Richmond had eight points, five rebounds and three steals while junior guard April Bryant had five assists and a pair of blocked shots. Sophomore forward Stephanie Coluccini tossed in six points while sophomore forward Lacie Smith had five points and three rebounds for the Mules.
The win also gave Moravian a 5.5 to 4.5 lead in the annual Matte Award standings between the two Lehigh Valley rivals.
Newspaper Box Score Muhlenberg College vs Moravian College 1/26/04 7:00 PM at Johnston Hall, Bethlehem, PA At Johnston Hall, Bethlehem, PA MORAVIAN COLLEGE 85, MUHLENBERG COLLEGE 77 MUHLENBERG COLLEGE (12-4) Jill Friedman 6-15 6-9 18; Gwen Doyle 3-7 3-4 11; Susan Marchiano 4-10 1-2 9; Tiffany Kirk 3-10 0-0 9; Becky Richmond 3-13 0-1 8; Stephanie Coluccini 2-7 2-2 6; Lacie Smith 2-9 0-0 5; Erin DeVaney 1-2 0-0 3; Kristen Piscadlo 1-8 0-0 3; Lindsay Orosz 1-1 0-0 3; Lindsay Tis 1-3 0-2 2; Sam Tager 0-2 0-0 0; Valerie Robuck 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 27-88 12-20 77. MORAVIAN COLLEGE (11-6) Rachel Berlin 8-11 3-5 20; Stephanie Seaman 7-20 1-3 15; Kelly Applegate 2-3 6-6 10; Kim Hughes 3-6 3-6 10; Lindsay Brase 4-5 1-1 9; Jenny Hackleman 3-4 3-4 9; Katie Rizman 2-6 1-2 6; Jen Behagg 3-9 0-0 6. Totals 32-64 18-27 85. Muhlenberg College............ 33 44 - 77 Moravian College.............. 51 34 - 85 3-point goals-Muhlenberg College 11-33 (Tiffany Kirk 3-7; Gwen Doyle 2-6; Becky Richmond 2-6; Lindsay Orosz 1-1; Lacie Smith 1-4; Erin DeVaney 1-2; Kristen Piscadlo 1-5; Sam Tager 0-1; Valerie Robuck 0-1), Moravian College 3-11 (Kim Hughes 1-2; Katie Rizman 1-4; Rachel Berlin 1-4; Jen Behagg 0-1). Fouled out--Muhlenberg College-None, Moravian College-None. Rebounds-Muhlenberg College 51 (Jill Friedman 13), Moravian College 54 (Jenny Hackleman 12). Assists-Muhlenberg College 21 (Aril Bryant 5), Moravian College 25 (Jen Behagg 6; Jenny Hackleman 6). Total fouls-Muhlenberg College 26, Moravian College 16. A-200 Moravian College Head Coach Mary Beth Spirk earns her 300th career victory. Spirk has a career record of 300-149 in 17 seasons at Moravian.