Box Score ALLENTOWN, Pa. – Goals from four individual players keyed a balanced offensive attack for the No. 4 Franklin & Marshall field hockey team in a 4-0 blanking of Muhlenberg on Saturday afternoon in Centennial Conference (CC) play.
The shutout was the Diplomats' fifth in a row and ninth of the season to improve to 12-2, 7-0 CC on the year, while the Mules fell to 8-4, 5-2 CC.
F&M gained control from the onset, pulling ahead by a 1-0 score in just the second minute, when Lauren Eastman tapped in a cross from Sydney Cole. Holding on to the 1-0 lead late in the first half, Mary Kate Olson played the ball in from outside the circle and found the stick of Sarah Powell, who deflected the ball in for the 2-0 edge.
After the break, Audrey Buckman collected a loose ball and sent a high shot on cage from the top of the circle to extend the advantage to 3-0 in the 55th minute. Sydney Cole wrapped up the scoring just four minutes later, taking a feed from Maria Guarisco and lighting the scoreboard for her fourth of the year.
Ilianna Santangelo (8-1) stopped the only shot she faced to earn her sixth shutout of the year, while the Mules' Emma Rosenthal (7-2) was charged with the loss after surrendering all four scores and turning back 10 attempts on cage.
Shots favored F&M by a dominant 21-1 margin, as well as corners at 16-1. Guarisco led the way with five shots, followed by four from Bridget Falcone and three from Eastman.
The Diplomats return to the field next Saturday, traveling to Washington for a 1:00 p.m. start.
