ALLENTOWN, Pa. - Competing in its second Centennial Conference matchup of the season, the Haverford College women's basketball team (3-5, 0-2 CC) suffered a 65-56 defeat to the Muhlenberg Mules (9-1, 2-0 CC) on Saturday afternoon at Memorial Gym.
In a low-scoring opening seven minutes, the Mules took an early 9-6 lead, as it was the Fords versus Emily Unger, who scored all nine points for Muhlenberg. Meanwhile, Haverford went 3-of-7 from the field, with Audrey Jakway, Caroline Orza, and Brianna Feifer each contributing two points. However, Muhlenberg closed out the quarter on an 11-5 scoring run, taking a 20-11 lead into the second quarter. During this stretch, Ava Connolly scored five of the final 11 points, including one three-pointer. Orza kept Haverford alive in the closing minutes, connecting on the team's only three-pointer of the quarter for the Scarlet and Black.
Haverford opened the first five minutes of the second quarter with a 7-3 scoring run, cutting the host's lead to 23-17. Orza continued to find the bottom of the net, answering a three-pointer from Connolly at the 6:17 mark. Another three-pointer, this time from Feifer, trimmed the Mules' lead to 25-21 before Unger sank a jump shot to push the advantage back to 27-21. This prompted the Fords to call a timeout with 3:39 remaining in the first half. Haverford edged out the Mules 6-5 in the final three-and-a-half minutes, reducing the host's lead to 32-27 at halftime. Feifer contributed all six points during this stretch, giving the Fords momentum heading into the break.
At halftime, Feifer led all scorers with 13 points, while Muhlenberg's Connolly had 11.
The Mules came storming out of the gate to start the second half, going on a 7-1 scoring run to lead 39-28 with 7:36 left in the third quarter. During this momentum-shifting stretch, Veronica Dawson tallied five points, giving Muhlenberg some breathing room. However, a Scarlet and Black timeout at 7:36 sparked a rally from the visitors, as the Fords responded with a 10-0 scoring run to bring the deficit to just one point, 39-38, with 4:06 remaining in the third quarter.
During this run, Orza proved pivotal, scoring seven points, including two three-pointers—one of which became a four-point play. Both teams traded four points each to close out the quarter, with Muhlenberg clinging to a one-point lead, 43-42, entering the final 10 minutes.
Just like the third quarter, the Mules opened the fourth with another hot start, scoring 10 unanswered points to force a Haverford timeout at the 6:04 mark. Muhlenberg went 4-of-6 from the field, including 2-of-3 from beyond the arc, to extend their lead to 53-42. Over the next two-and-a-half minutes, both teams slowed offensively, with the Fords trimming the lead by only two points to make it 55-44 with 3:50 left.
Despite Haverford finding their shooting rhythm in the final minutes, Muhlenberg maintained their pace, outscoring the Fords 14-10 to secure a 65-56 victory. Haverford went 6-of-10 from the field during the closing minutes, with Orza adding six more points, hitting her fifth and sixth three-pointers of the game.
Connolly finished with a game-high 23 points, narrowly edging out Orza, who totaled 21 points. Feifer also had a productive performance for the Fords, scoring 16 points and pulling down 10 rebounds to secure her first career double-double.
Haverford returns to action on Wednesday, December 11, when PSU Brandywine visits Gooding '84 Arena. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m. as part of a doubleheader, with the men's team set to take on Messiah at 8 p.m.