ALLENTOWN, Pa. – A pair of first-half goals separated by less than ten minutes was just enough for the Ursinus College field hockey team in a 2-1 Centennial Conference victory at Muhlenberg on Wednesday night.

Senior Brooke Overly opened the scoring and freshman Devon Carroll followed with her first career goal for Ursinus (7-5, 5-2), which withstood a second-half surge from the Mules to escape with a crucial league victory.

The Bears had few chances in the first half, but took full advantage of the opportunities that five penalty corners created. The visitors seized control with two goals in a span of just nine minutes, the first when sophomore Erin Saybolt's shot was saved but made its way to freshman Gabriela Howell, who batted down the rebound toward Overly at the left post. The senior deftly backhanded the ball into the right corner of the cage for her fifth goal in as many games – the 30th of her career – and a 1-0 lead with 18:26 remaining in the opening half.

About nine minutes later, Howell inserted a corner to Carroll at the top of the circle, and the freshman moved around a defender to open her collegiate account with a high shot to the top right corner of the net.

Muhlenberg (2-9, 1-5) began to impose its will from the outset of the second half, controlling play in its offensive end and testing Ursinus goalie Jules Singer with a number of tight shots and corners. The Mules got on the board when Courtney Allen re-directed Laura Holdman's hard pass from just outside the top of the circle following a corner insert, making it a 2-1 affair with 11:18 remaining.

The Mules forced a big save from Singer only a minute later, but the Bears were able to clear and maintained possession in the home end for much of the final ten minutes of play.

Ursinus held a slim 9-8 advantage in shots, though Muhlenberg owned a 7-4 second-half edge in that category. The Bears attempted seven corners to three for the Mules.

Overly was the offensive catalyst for Ursinus, leading all players with six shots – five of them on frame.

Junior goalkeeper Jules Singer finished with four saves – three in the second half – to earn the win, while Emma Rosenthal and Jordan Segrave split six stops for Muhlenberg, with Segrave blanking the Bears in the second stanza.

The field hockey team looks for a signature victory on Saturday, when No. 4 TCNJ comes to Snell Field for a non-conference showdown.