CHESTERTOWN, Md. – The Franklin & Marshall men's lacrosse team got its pivotal week off to a great start with a 13-11 win at Washington College on Wednesday night. The Diplomats moved into fifth place with their win over the Shoremen with just two games to play in the regular season.

F&M never trailed during Wednesday's road battle as WAC only managed to tie the game at five midway through the second quarter. Liam Timmins led the Diplomats with four points (3g, 1a), while Christian Sullivan, Will Mollihan, and Tommy Garofalo each tallied two goals. Eight different players in total contributed goals to the balanced team effort which additionally saw Sage Garito and Eric Mueller combine to stop 17 of the Shoremen's 28 shots on goal.

Garofalo tallied his two goals right out of the gate as the Diplomats were up 2-0 just midway through the first period and 3-1 after 15 minutes of game action. Garito got the start in goal and made five saves during the first quarter and added four more during his final 15 minutes of action. Goals from Colin Hueston and Cullen Decker stretched F&M's lead to 5-2 at the 6:31 mark of the second, but WAC scored three straight to tie game at five-all. Nevertheless, Sullivan and Timmins each scored in the final 1:04 of the opening half to keep momentum on the Diplomat sideline during the break.

The Diplomats' lead reached a game-high four goals with tallies from Sullivan and Mollihan less than four minutes into the second half. Washington College would come within a goal following another 3-0 run, but late goals from Timmins and Kyle Russell staved off any further comeback attempts during the third quarter.

Washington College took 10 shots on goal during the final 15 minutes, but Mueller turned away seven of those attempts to keep his side in front and secure the win. The Shoremen finished with a 56-36 edge in shots and a 19-9 advantage in face-offs.

The play of F&M's goalies really flipped the play in the Diplomats' favor as Garito picked up the win while making nine saves before Mueller added eight more during the second half. Together, that duo combined for a 60 percent-plus save percentage, while the Shoremen stopped less than 50 percent of F&M's efficient shooting performance.

Men's lacrosse will now welcome No. 19 Muhlenberg to Shadek Stadium this Saturday for Senior Day. Opening faceoff is scheduled for 12 p.m. against the Mules and the Diplomats will honor the members of their graduating class prior to the CC clash with a pregame ceremony. The Mules and Diplomats currently occupy the fourth and fifth positions in the Centennial Conference standings heading into Saturday's game.