Steph Umbach, Muhlenberg
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Sporting special edition camouflage jerseys in honor of the fundraising efforts it did for the Wounded Warrior Project, the Muhlenberg women's lacrosse team came out and played like warriors in a 17-9 defeat of McDaniel.
"I think we were warriors out there today," senior Christina Vittorio said.
While one record-setting performance occurred on the offensive end, the star of the day was Muhlenberg's defensive effort. Muhlenberg's D held McDaniel, a team that averages more than 13 goals a game, scoreless over the final 23:39 of the game, and gave up only four goals over the 47:24.
For Vittorio and Co. , it all came down to being vocal.
"Today was about focusing on communication because whenever we're talking constantly we do so much better than we are silent back there. I don't think we stopped talking once today," Vittorio said. "In the beginning of the game we always have those little nerves, and I feel like it takes us a couple of minutes just to get adjusted to their type of play on offense. Once we did that we were good."
It was the first time Muhlenberg (6-5, 2-3) defeated McDaniel (8-5, 3-3) in the last five matchups, including last year's first-round playoff game. The D held the fifth all-time leading scorer in Centennial Conference history to just one point on an assist.
"Our defense played phenomenal. They are so strong and they play together, " Stephanie Umbach said.
Umbach had a phenomenal day of her own. The senior attack came in needing one goal to break the school record of 218, which she shared with Courtney Tapkas '06. Umbach wasted little time in grabbing the record, scoring on a quick stick just 1:58 into the game off an assist from Kelsey Nagle. She finished with nine points on seven goals and two assists. She now owns the goals and points records at Muhlenberg, a goal she set for herself before even playing her first game.
"It's just awesome. I knew since I came to Muhlenberg as a freshman I saw these records. I wasn't able to achieve anything like this in high school, so I set these goals for myself as a freshman and I was so happy I was able to get here," Umbach (pictured at left) said. "It makes me feel awesome and makes me realize the hard work pays off. I'm definitely not done yet. We still have four more games to go."
"Steph deserves it. She works so hard in practice. Not only is she scoring the goals but she's adding to the offense by moving, cutting and passing. We do a lot better up there with her involved," Vittorio said of her teammate.
Umbach also set the CC record for draw controls. She entered the game with 299, one short of the record, and recorded eight to get her number to 307.
Adding goals to the victory were Nagle and Stephanie D'Ascoli with hat tricks and Kayleigh Thies with a pair. Nagle also had five assists. D'Ascoli scored all three of her goals in a Muhlenberg run of six straight goals to end the game.
Casey Armstrong had a goal and three assists in the first 20 minutes before being forced from the game with two yellow cards, and one of the players who filled in for her, Sarah McTamany, had a goal and an assist.
Playing at Scotty Wood Stadium for the first time in three weeks, the game had added meaning for the Mules, who spent the week fundraising for the Wounded Warrior Project. Many also donned eye black for the first time, and the tough look might have given them an added boost.
"It was great to wear these jerseys and have McDaniel wear camo as well. Just setting up the field and having it at home, playing for a cause really helped us keep our heads up and added to our momentum," Vittorio said.
"All week we've been raising money, having get-togethers, fundraisers. We were so excited about our jerseys because they were cool, but more so we were so excited to help the Wounded Warrior Project because [our veterans] are so great. They've done so much for us, so we were so excited to step up for them."