Box Score LANCASTER, Pa. – No. 6 Franklin & Marshall hosted No. 2 Messiah on Wednesday night for a nonconference field hockey matchup featuring a pair of highly-ranked squads, with the Diplomats falling 3-2 in overtime. F&M dropped to 4-2 with the defeat, while the Falcons improved to 6-1.
Messiah needed just 130 seconds to score the golden goal in overtime as Nicole Wilkerson found Carissa Gehman for the gamewinner. Following a brief period of pressure from the Diplomats, a counterattack saw Wilkerson carry the ball all the way across F&M's circle and fire a pass back to Gehman for the close-range finish.
It was the Diplomats that got on the board first in the sixth minute, as Sydney Cole got on the end of a pass from Emily Nagle to make the score 1-0. Nagle collected a rebound following a shot from Melanie Consiglio, and from the left post found Cole to the right of the cage for the opening tally.
However, it was the Falcons that next lit the scoreboard, pulling even in the 30th minute. Wilkerson found a short pass to Gehman, whose shot from the top of the circle found the bottom-left corner of the cage and leveled the score.
The remaining minutes provided few scoring opportunities, and at halftime the score remained 1-1. The Diplomats led the shot count 5-2 and held a 2-0 edge in penalty corners at the break.
Messiah took the lead early in the second, getting a score from Taylor Holt to go up 2-1. Holt picked up a rebound on the right side, and pushed a shot toward the far post that took a deflection on its way to the back of the cage.
Back-and-forth action saw both teams create chances in the following 25 minutes, but the Diplomats scored the crucial goal with five minutes to go, tying the game at 2-2. A penalty corner resulted in a shot from the edge of the circle, which F&M's Nicole Bodo managed to deflect into the far right corner.
The Diplomats earned a penalty corner with 40 seconds remaining, but were unable to convert as the game progressed into overtime.
Ilianna Santagelo (4-2) took the loss with two saves, while Shelby Landes (6-1) made five saves for Messiah in the victory.
Cole and Consiglio paced the Diplomat offense with three shots, while Nagle, Schannauer, and Annie Horsley all added two.
F&M will look to get back on track on Saturday, when No. 4 Ursinus comes to Lancaster for a crucial Centennial Conference match.
