LANCASTER, Pa. – Franklin & Marshall dropped a 70-60 contest to Washington on Saturday afternoon in Centennial Conference (CC) women's basketball action. The Diplomats fell to 3-18, 1-13 CC, while the Shorewomen improved to 7-13, 6-8 CC.

F&M scored the first nine points of the game on a spurt that was capped off by a Sarah Haddon layup at 17:32. From there, Washington responded and went on an 11-2 run to tie the game at 11-11 with 12:37 left in the first.

Throughout the next five minutes of action, the contest remained close and the Shorewomen held a 21-20 lead with 7:21 to go. Washington extended the lead by going on a 15-7 spurt to close out the half and take a 36-27 lead heading into intermission.

Kristina McCarthy paced the Diplomats in the first, scoring 13 points including a 7-for-7 mark from the charity stripe. 

In the opening minutes of the second half, Washington extended the lead to 11 at 50-39 with 16:13 remaining. F&M rallied and scored five straight points, including a 3-pointer from Sam Plunkett, to bring the Diplomats within six at 50-44 with 15:12 left in the game.

The Shorewomen countered and went on a 16-8 run to take a 66-52 advantage with 8:18 left as Washington never let F&M cut the deficit to single digits again en route to the 70-60 victory. 

McCarthy finished with a game-high 18 points, while adding nine rebounds for the Diplomats. Emma Lisle notched her second double-double of the season, scoring a career-high 17 points and adding 12 rebounds. 

Four Shorewomen were in double figures in points, including 18 off the bench from Kelly Mitchell, while Emily Hubley tallied 13. Erin Fitzgerald and Latisha Pledger added 10 points.

Washington's reserves played a key role in the contest as the bench scored 32 points. F&M shot 88.2 percent from the free throw line, while the Shorewomen shot 81.5 percent.

The Diplomats return to the court on Wednesday when the Diplomats travel to play Ursinus. Tip-off is slated for 8:00 p.m.