After winning the first four Buttermaker tournaments (’98-’01), the Mules are looking to reclaim the championship. The field is split into three pools of three teams.

Some of the toughest competition may come from King’s and Haverford. The Monarchs won the Buttermaker in 2002 and have consistently been at the top of the Freedom Conference. The Fords already have a title under their belts, having won their own tournament after going a perfect 4-0 last weekend.

The Centennial Conference will be well represented in the Buttermaker, as Dickinson, Haverford, Swarthmore and the Mules will all be competing. Muhlenberg opens competition vs. Misericordia at 4 p.m. Friday.

Field Hockey: The Mules are going after their second consecutive Muhlenberg Invitational championship. This year’s field includes the addition of Montclair State University and Catholic University. Montclair is coming off a 15-5 season that saw the Red Hawks finish second in the NJAC and advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

“We usually go to Montclair’s tournament in the spring so we have developed a big rivalry with them. But, I think all the teams in our tournament this year are strong,” senior Pamela Coakley said.

The Mules open play Friday when they face Elizabethtown, which finished 7-13 a year ago, at 4 p.m.

Men’s Soccer: The Mules split with Stevens Tech last season, defeating the Ducks in the Mule Invitational but falling to them in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. However, this year the teams are not scheduled to meet in the Mule Invitational. Stevens Tech (coached by Muhlenberg alum Tim O’Donohue) went 19-2-2 in 2003 and advanced to the NCAA regional championship before falling to eventual national runner-up Drew.

Moravian and Hunter are the other two participants in the tournament. Moravian went 4-12-3 last year, while Hunter finished 2003 with a 5-11-3 record. Muhlenberg opens play Saturday when it hosts Hunter at 7 p.m. and continues Sunday against Moravian at 5:30 in the first Matte Award contest of the year.

Women’s Soccer: The 20th-ranked Mules will be facing a familiar foe in the University of Scranton when they open their tournament Saturday at 5 p.m. Scranton accounted for two of the Mules' four losses last year, including a 1-0 loss in the NCAA Tournament.

The Lady Royals went 22-1-1, captured their sixth straight Freedom Conference title, advanced all the way to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament last year and are ranked 23rd in the nation.

The Mules’ second opponent, Smith College, also had a quality season in 2003. Smith went 13-6-3 and was the ECAC New England runner-up. Roger Williams rounds out the tournament field.