LANCASTER, Pa. - Halley Cruice delivered the decisive point with the match on the line to propel the Franklin & Marshall women's squash team to a thrilling 5-4 victory over visiting George Washington on Friday night. The No. 17 Diplomats conclude the regular season portion of their schedule at 10-8, while the No. 19 Colonials fall to 10-9 with the loss.

Deadlocked at 4-4 after the first eight matches, the Diplomats' hopes rested on the shoulders of Cruice at the No. 3 position. The freshman captured the first game 11-6, but Lauren Mathieu answered back for the Colonials by taking the next two games to pull ahead, 2-1. Cruice then tallied an 11-6 victory in game four to send the match to five, before downing Mathieu by a convincing 11-4 margin in the final game to wrap up the win for F&M.

The Diplomats held the early advantage as they took three of the first four matches. At No. 2, Roxanna Mead secured the lone straight-game triumph of the night for F&M with an 11-2, 11-7, 11-5 win over Kelly Barnes. Katherine Perry (No. 6) and Elizabeth Gatling (No. 8) also secured early wins for F&M. Perry outlasted Tiffany Hingley in five games (8-11, 11-4, 11-5, 10-12, 13-11), while Gatling took down Maya Nair in four (11-9, 6-11, 11-9, 11-7).

Erin Golueke notched a 11-9, 9-11, 11-7, 11-7 victory over Caroline Shumway for the Diplomats at the No. 5 spot, but George Washington climbed back into the match with narrow wins at No. 1, No. 4, No. 7 and No. 9 to set up Cruice's decisive match.

F&M returns to action on Friday, Feb. 24 for day one of the Howe Cup hosted by Harvard.

#17 Franklin & Marshall 5, #19 George Washington 4