SWARTHMORE, Pa. - Dominating in their third victory this week, the Swarthmore women's basketball team defeated Muhlenberg College on Thursday, Jan. 26th by a score of 58-43.
 
Offensively, the Garnet were carried by two double digit performances from sophomore Alyssa Hayashi and senior Dana Bandurick, with both players putting up season high totals of 19 and 18 points respectively. Bandurick also played a big role on the defensive end, with the forward notching team leading marks of five steals and one block, while also pulling down seven rebounds.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Garnet erupted out of the gate, with buckets from senior Dana Bandurick, first year Anna Hansson and sophomore Alyssa Hayashi giving Swarthmore an eight point lead before Muhelnberg could even get on the board. While the Mules would finally respond with a layup of their own, that would be their last points of the first quarter, while the Garnet offense showed no signs of slowing down. When the buzzer sounded, Swarthmore sat on their largest first quarter lead of the season at 19-2.

- The Garnet saw an incredible level of offensive distribution, as five different players saw their name flash up on the score sheet.

- While the Mules were able to open the second period with seven straight points, a triple from Hayashi recaptured the magic that the Swarthmore offense had harnessed in the second quarter, igniting a 14-0 run to give the Garnet a 32-12 lead with 1:10 left to play. Free throws from senior Kim Kockenmesiter as well as a last minute layup from sophomore Carolina Lopez extended that lead, with Swarthmore carrying a dominant 37-12 advantage into the half.

- On top of their stellar offensive attack in the first half, Swarthmore played scrappy and effective defense, forcing 13 turnovers and just an 18.5% shooting percentage out of Muhlenberg.

- While a Hayashi jumper started off the scoring in the second half, giving the Garnet what would turn out to be their largest lead of the night at 27, Swarthmore were unable to keep up the momentum. The Mules were able to take advantage of Swarthmore's offensive woes, outshooting the Garnet 18-11 in the quarter, going as far as to close their advantage to 16 with 2:54 left in the period. Swarthmore were able to recover somewhat through the last couple minutes of play, expanding their lead once again to 18 thanks to a jumper from sophomore Norah Wingfield and two last second foul shots from Bandrick, going into the fourth up 48-30.

- Looking to put the game away early, Bandurick and Hayashi put the team on their back, scoring ten straight points for the Garnet including back to back Hayashi triples. While the Mules attempted a comeback late in the quarter, Swarthmore's lead proved insurmountable, as the Garnet closed out the game 58-43.

- The Garnet are now 7-10, 5-7 in conference play 

GARNET LEADERS
Points: Hayashi (19), Bandurick (18), Hansson (8)
Assists: Bandurick (9)
Rebounds: Hansson (9), Bandurick (7), Hayashi (5)
Steals: Bandurick (5), Kockenmeister (4), Hayashi (3)
Blocks: Bandurick (1), Selinger (1)
 
UP NEXT
Playing their third game in a week, the Garnet will travel to Baltimore, MD on Saturday, Jan. 28th to take on Johns Hopkins University.