CENTER VALLEY, Pa. -- Strong play down the stretch of two victories by the Navy women's basketball team helped Marina Muenster (Fr., Coppell, Texas) earn the Lids Team Sports Patriot League Rookie (Freshman) of the Week award for the sport on Monday, as well as be named as the Naval Academy Athletic Association's Athlete of the Week presented by Rolls Royce.

Muenster becomes the third Mid to garner the weekly league nod this season. She joins Sarah Reilly (Fr., Cincinnati, Ohio), who earned the award on Nov. 24, and Taylor Dunham (Fr., Fort Belvoir, Va.), the honoree on both Dec. 8 and Jan. 5, as Navy's recipients of the laurel. It is the first time in eight years and the seventh time in league history in which one team has had as many as three different players receive the award in a single season.

Munester began the week by setting career highs for both points (14) and rebounds (12) in Navy's 61-55 victory at Boston U. She failed to score in the first half of the game, but connected on five of six shots from the floor and four of six free throw attempts in 12 minutes of playing time in the second half. Muenster, who also accrued eight of her rebounds in the final stanza, accounted for eight of Navy's last 13 and 14 of the team's last 26 points.

She would go on to score four points and grab 10 boards in Navy's 53-50 victory at Army. Muenster's points came on back-to-back possessions late in the game. She first scored on a jumper to give the Mids a 47-44 lead with 4:40 left to play, then was fouled while snaring a rebound on the other end of the floor. Muenster proceeded to sink both free throw attempts to extend Navy's advantage out to five points.

Muenster's previous highs for points and rebounds in a game this season were nine and eight, respectively, and she had totaled 15 points and 17 caroms over the course of Navy's five games prior to the contest against the Terriers.

Navy, 3-1 in Patriot League play, will play host to Bucknell Wednesday night at 7 p.m. in Alumni Hall.