Baseball, softball

march madness in maine for women’s hoops

Fresh off winning the Centennial Conference championship on its home floor, the Muhlenberg women’s basketball team will pack its bags and head to Maine for the first two rounds of the NCAA Division III Tournament.

The Mules will travel to Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, to face Westfield State in a first-round game on Friday, March 6, at 5:00. Bowdoin will take on Castleton State in the pod’s other first-round game at 7:00, with the two winners meeting

Sophomore Kelly McKeon was named CC player of the week for the third week in a row after averaging 17.5 points, 11.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists in two CC playoff games.

Saturday at 7:00 for the right to advance to the “Sweet 16.”

Muhlenberg (24-3) will be making its fifth trip to the NCAA Tournament. The Mules are 2-4 in their previous appearances, having reached the second round in both 1998 and 2006. Last year, Muhlenberg hosted a regional, losing to DeSales in the first round.

Although it has no bearing on NCAA selection, Muhlenberg has the highest national ranking of the four teams in the pod. In last week’s polls, the Mules were ranked 19th by D3hoops.com and 15th by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. Bowdoin was 25th in the coaches poll and received votes from D3hoops.com; neither of the other two teams was ranked.

Westfield State (22-4) won the Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference title to earn its third NCAA berth. The Owls participated in 1995 and 1996, falling in the first round both times. Westfield is from the same conference as Salem State, one of the four schools in Muhlenberg’s NCAA pod last year.

Bowdoin (24-4) upset top-10 Amherst to win the New England Small College Athletic Conference championship. The Polar Bears, coached by former Swarthmore head coach Adrienne Shibles, are in the NCAAs for the ninth straight year. They have an all-time NCAA Tournament record of 20-9, reaching the national championship game in 2004.

Castleton State (17-11) won the North Atlantic Conference title to earn its first NCAA berth.
Click here for the complete bracket.