Game Notes

Last Week

Franklin & Marshall wrapped up the regular season by battling No. 7 Gettysburg an 11-10 overtime defeat. It was the third-straight nationally-ranked opponent for the Diplomats, including a win over Swarthmore the previous week. That contest was also Senior Day for the Diplomats who used a 6-3 advantage in the second quarter to build an 8-4 lead before the Bullets were able to mount the late comeback. Senior Kai Kelly had one of the three Diplomat hat tricks on Senior Day, with Jack Luviano and Mason Montrella also scoring three goals. Dillon Mannix would also find the back of the cage inside Shadek Stadium. Both goalies had strong outings, with Teddy Scarborough stopping 14 of the 25 shots on goal that he faced.

Saturday's game was a battle throughout as the Bullets held slight margins in shots (40-29) and shots on goal (25-22). F&M held the advantage in both faceoff wins (14-11) and ground balls (29-28). Owen Hire was one of seven Diplomats who caused a turnover, forcing two giveaways. Jackson Barnhill collected a team-leading four ground balls as one of eight Diplomats with multiple GBs.

Last Time vs. Muhlenberg

It took a remarkable defensive effort from Muhlenberg, but the Diplomats saw their nine-game winning streak during the regular season snapped by the Mules earlier this month in a 9-3 final. Despite the final shot total ending in just a 32-26 advantage for the visiting Mules, F&M was held without a goal until the fourth quarter by Muhlenberg goalie Max Kunnath who finished the contest with eight of his team's 10 saves.

F&M goalie Teddy Scarborough finished the day with 14 saves, as he made seven of those stops during the third quarter as Muhlenberg tallied just one during the first and third periods. Both teams won eight face-offs during Saturday's Centennial Conference contest. Owen Krause's three ground balls came after winning six of his eight face-off attempts. Connor Traynor added a 2-for-7 day at the X.

Muhlenberg Preview

The Mules went 9-8 (5-3 CC) during the regular season to finish in a three-way tie for third place in the Centennial Conference standings. Swarthmore won the tiebreak for the No. 3 seed based on goal differential during the regular season meetings between the squads, while the Mules head-to-head win against the Diplomats gave them hosting rights for Tuesday's first round game. Four Mules scored at least 20 goals during the regular season, led by Jack Bill's 31. Daniel Friedel scored three goals when these teams met the first time and has 20 goals on the year. The team's top point producer is Chase Kusko who has dished out 53 assists while also scoring 18 times during the regular season. The two sides both won eight face-offs during the regular season matchup, with Muhlenberg winning 50.7% of its restarts for the season. Max Kunnath got the start against the Diplomats during the regular season. He is stopping just over the half of the shots he has faced during his time in the cage while allowing 9.57 goals per game. Jace Riley Day has also made five starts on the year.

F&M vs. Muhlenberg in the Playoffs

The only time the Mules and Diplomats have met in the postseason was this exact scenario during the 2023 season. The Mules also won by six in the regular season contest (13-7), but F&M was able to avenge that defeat in the playoffs with a 9-8 overtime victory. Will Mulligan provided the game-winning goal during that thrilling contest which moved F&M into the Centennial Conference semifinals.

Franklin & Marshall will be making its 12 appearance all-time in the Centennial Conference Tournament. The Diplomats won two titles under head coach Todd Cavallaro who captured the program's first CC Title in 2017 and backed that up during the 2021 season with another run to the championship. The winner of the Centennial Conference Tournament will earn the conference's automatic qualifier spot to the NCAA Tournament. The Diplomats have advanced to the NCAA Tournament seven times in program history.

Centennial Conference Leaders from Franklin & Marshall (Top 10)

Points
9. Mason Montrella (43)

Goals
10. Kai Kelly (30)
10. Mason Montrella (30)

Assists
9. Preston Blue (19)

Shots
4. Kai Kelly (132)

Caused Turnovers
9. Owen Hire (19)

Goals Against Average
1. Teddy Scarborough (7.29)

Saves
3. Teddy Scarborough (189)

Save Percentage
2. Teddy Scarborough (.639)