Box Score LANCASTER, Pa. – The No. 5 Franklin & Marshall field hockey team opened Centennial Conference (CC) play on a high note, blanking Swarthmore by a 2-0 score on Saturday afternoon at Tylus Field.
The Diplomats improved to 4-1, 1-0 CC with the win while the Garnet dropped to 4-3, 0-1 CC.
A dominant offensive showing for F&M in the first 34 minutes of the half failed to produce any goals despite an incredible 16-0 edge in shots for the Diplomats. Colleen Francis helped salvage the opening stanza, landing a penalty stroke goal with just sevens seconds remaining until halftime to send F&M into the break up 1-0.
The score was the first of Francis' career.
Just four minutes into the second frame, Swarthmore looked to answer with a penalty stroke opportunity of its own, but Diplomat goalkeeper Ilianna Santangelo dove to her right on the low shot attempt and got her blocker in front of the ball to keep the Garnet scoreless.
F&M added a much-needed insurance goal in the 62nd minute when Sydney Cole deflected a shot attempt in front of the cage. A short scrum ensued on the left side and the ball was eventually hit into the lower right corner of the goal by Erin Coverdale, her second of the season, to put the contest out of reach.
Overall, the shot count favored F&M by a 25-3 margin, as well as corners at 21-3. Annie Horsley was aggressive on offense throughout the 70 minutes of play, recording a team-high seven shots, followed by Coverdale and Cole with three each.
Santangelo (4-1) earned the shutout win after picking up two saves while her counterpart Zelda Bank (4-3) was dealt the hard-luck loss after turning back 10 shots on the days.
The Diplomats face a tough non-conference test on Wednesday when F&M welcomes No. 3 Messiah to Lancaster for a 5:00 p.m. showdown.
