HAVERFORD, Pa. – Persistence paid off for the Franklin & Marshall women's soccer team on Wednesday afternoon. It took just over 98 minutes, but the Diplomats were able to finally break through during the first overtime period as Haley Barge scored her seventh goal of the season on a nice give-and-go pass with Sophie Koziol for a crucial Centennial Conference victory. The win marked the Diplomats' (10-1-1, 4-1-1 CC) first victory over the Fords (6-5-2, 3-3-1 CC) since the 2007 season.

That goal capped a very competitive match which saw F&M hold the advantage in both shots (11-8) and corner kick attempts (7-5). Emily Senko was called on to make just one save on the afternoon as the Diplomats' defense did a terrific job blocking shots and forcing others wide of the goal. Senko's only save of the contest came during the 12th minute of play as Haverford was held without a shot on goal for nearly 90 minutes after that intial attempt. The Diplomats' clean sheet was their ninth of the season as a team, tying the school record which was originally set back in 1998.

Barge was one of four Diplomats to finish with multiple shot attempts on the afternoon. The goal was the seventh of the senior's season, all of which have come during her last eight appearances on the pitch. Today's performance follows up a two-goal performance against Bryn Mawr over the weekend. Koziol certainly picked the perfect opportunity for her first collegiate assist as it was her pass that lead to the game-winning goal. The F&M first-year has certainly made an impact after appearing in the starting lineup during each of the last six matches.

Highlighted by the game-winning goal, both offenses seemed to pick up momentum as the match wore on. Franklin & Marshall finished the first 45 minutes with a 5-2 advantage in shots, but put just one of those attempts on target. It was the Fords that owned a 6-5 shot advantage during the second half, but Franklin & Marshall started to ramp up the pressure in front of the net as Haverford goalie Hannah Friedrich was called on to make three saves during that time. Two of those saves came during the final 10 minutes of regulation as the Diplomats put the Fords under continuous pressure.

Barge would eventually score the game-winner on what was the only shot of the overtime period for either team. Today's victory officially marked the first time that F&M has won 10 matches in back-to-back seasons since the 1996-02 run which saw the Diplomats do so in seven consecutive years.

Currently sitting in third place in the Centennial Conference standings, the Diplomats will now host three of their final four matches on Tylus Field to close the regular season. That stretch starts this Saturday when Swarthmore visits Lancaster for a 3 p.m. start. That contest will be a part of the College's TrueBlue Weekend, which will have multiple celebrations throughout those days.