LANCASTER, Pa. – Franklin & Marshall battled Johns Hopkins in a 54-49 defeat on Wednesday night in Centennial Conference (CC) action at the Mayser Center. The Diplomats fell to 7-17, 4-15 CC, while the Blue Jays improved to 15-10, 13-7 CC.

Down by two at 35-33 with 15:47 left in the second, F&M put together a 12-1 run to grab a commanding nine-point lead with 8:45 remaining in the game. 

The advantage was short-lived as Hopkins chipped away at the Diplomats' lead with a 12-2 run of its own to pull ahead 48-47 with 2:01 on the clock.

After an F&M turnover, the Blue Jays extended the lead to three with a basket at the other end. Emma Lisle answered with a jumper in the paint to cut the deficit to one at 50-49 with 1:19 to go.

However, the Diplomats were unable to find the bottom of the net on their next possession and were held scoreless in the final minute as Hopkins escaped with the five-point victory.

Seven lead changes highlighted the first half as a 15-10 Diplomat lead with 12:26 left was the largest advantage for either team.  The Blue Jays fought back to tie the game at 23-23 and eventually went into halftime with a 29-28 advantage.

Hopkins shot 44 percent from the floor on the night including a 50 percent effort in the opening half. F&M came out with a hot hand, shooting 41 percent in the first, but struggled in the second with a 26 percent clip.

Elizabeth Snyder paced the offense with 21 points on 7-of-16 shooting, while Alexa Barbush added eight.

Alex Vasilla notched a game-high 23 points on 9-of-14 clip from the floor for the Blue Jays while also pulling down 15 rebounds.

The Diplomats close out their season on Saturday when F&M takes on Dickinson. The game is set to begin at 1:00 p.m.

JOHNS HOPKINS 54, FRANKLIN & MARSHALL 49

JOHNS HOPKINS (15-10, 13-7 CC)

Alex Vassila 9-14 5-5 23; Liz Tommasi 4-9 0-0 9; Stacy Fairey 2-8 2-2 7; Sarah Higbee 3-4 0-0 6; Ciara McCullagh 2-5 0-0 4; Katie Clark 1-2 0-0 2; Maggie Fruehan 0-2 2-2 2; Fatu Conteh 0-1 1-2 1; Jessica Brown 0-3 0-0 0.

Totals 21-48 10-11 54.

FRANKLIN & MARSHALL (7-17, 4-15 CC)

Elizabeth Snyder 7-16 5-6 21; Alexa Barbush 4-17 0-1 8; Kara Bacile 1-5 2-2 4; Colleen Bott 2-5 0-0 4; Emma Lisle 2-6 0-0 4; Sam Plunkett 1-1 0-0 3; Tracy Hahn 1-1 0-0 2; Kristina McCarthy 1-4 0-0 2; Emily Wetz 0-1 1-2 1.

Totals 19-56 8-11 49.

Johns Hopkins.................   29   25  -   54

Franklin & Marshall...........   28   21  -   49

3-point goals--Johns Hopkins 2-6 (Liz Tommasi 1-3; Stacy Fairey 1-1; Katie Clark 0-1; Jessica Brown 0-1), Franklin & Marshall 3-9 (Elizabeth Snyder 2-5; Sam Plunkett 1-1; Kara Bacile 0-2; Emily Wetz 0-1).

Fouled out—Johns Hopkins-None, Franklin & Marshall-None.

Rebounds--Johns Hopkins 37 (Alex Vassila 15), Franklin & Marshall 29 (Kristina McCarthy 7).

Assists—Johns Hopkins 8 (Alex Vassila 3), Franklin & Marshall 10 (Kara Bacile 4).

Total fouls--Johns Hopkins 11, Franklin & Marshall 13.

Technical fouls—Johns Hopkins-None, Franklin & Marshall-None.

A-142