ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. – Down by nine points with just 1:46 remaining in regulation time, the Franklin & Marshall basketball team closed its season opener at Elizabethtown on 14-0 run to snatch the victory away from the homestanding Blue Jays. That late rally gave the Diplomats an 83-78 advantage at the final whistle.

Facing that deficit after a pair of Elizabethtown free throws, the Diplomats got back-to-back threes from first-year Dylan Cormac to make the game a one possession difference. Cormac also drew the harm on his second triple that resulted in an eventual four-point play. On the ensuing possession, Mark Suchy came up with a steal and found John Seidman in the paint to tie the game at 78 with exactly one minute to play.

With the score now tied after that furious 46 second sprint, Vakaris Grauslys came up shy on his initial attempt at the go-ahead basket, but got his own offensive rebound and was eventually fouled to give the Diplomats just their second lead of the night with 11 seconds to play. The defensive stops continued to come as F&M got a defensive rebound and forced a turnover on the Blue Jays' final two possessions before Seidman and Jaylen Green put the finishing touches on the game at the charity stripe.

Cormac's two key baskets from beyond the arc were part of a 15 point outing in his collegiate debut as he went 4-of-9 from distance. Five different Diplomats finished the opener in double figures, led by Seidman's 21 points. Josh Parra added a double-double with 16 boards and 10 points, while Green and Sebastien Charles finished with 11 and 10 points each.

The Diplomats led for a total of just 26 seconds in the season opener and were down by as many as 15 points early in the second half before their thrilling rally. F&M made 12 three-pointers on the night, eight of which came during the second half as the team shot nearly 40 percent from distance over the final 20 minutes. The key offensive rebound from Grauslys was perhaps the most fitting way for the Diplomats to take the lead as they held a 23-6 advantage in second chance points, with an additional 37-10 edge in points off the bench. That second chance advantage came on the heels of a 54-35 edge in rebounding.

Men's basketball will return to the court Friday when it hosts Cairn inside the Mayser Center at 8:30 p.m. as part of the William Marshall Tip-Off Tournament. Alvernia and Hampden-Sydney will get the tip-off event started in the first game that is slated for a 6:30 p.m. start.