LANCASTER, Pa. – The Franklin & Marshall women's basketball team (7-1, 1-0 CC) battled back from a 12-point deficit in the second quarter to defeat Swarthmore (3-5, 0-1 CC), 63-57, in the Diplomats' Centennial Conference (CC) opener Wednesday evening at the Mayser Center.

Trailing 17-8 at the start of the second quarter, F&M fought back with a 9-3 run to cut Swarthmore's advantage to 20-17 at the 6:35 mark of the frame. However, the Garnet responded with nine-consecutive points to earn its biggest lead of the night at 12 with 3:53 remaining in the half. Franklin & Marshall chipped away as Ally Trebelev made a layup, followed by Kayla McCrea drilling a three-pointer to get the home team within seven. After the Garnet made a layup at the two-minute mark, Mackenzie Ward hit a jumper and McCrea connected on another three-pointer to reduce Swarthmore's lead to 31-27 entering halftime.

Swarthmore slowly grew its lead back to 38-30 in the first four minutes of the third quarter. F&M responded with a layup from Kennedy Wilburn and a triple from Lauren Rusas to get the Diplomats within three. The Garnet led the Diplomats 43-38 with 2:55 left in the quarter when Lizzie Neville splashed a three-pointer to make it a two-point game. Both teams traded baskets with Rusas knocking down another three-pointer to make the score 47-44 with Swarthmore still leading after three quarters.

Swarthmore drained an early three-pointer, but was quicky countered with Quinn Galligan making a triple on the following possession. After the Garnet made a free throw, Trebelev chipped in four-consecutive points to tie the game at 51-all with 4:14 remaining in regulation. A layup from McCrea at the 3:27 mark gave the Diplomats their first lead of the game. Both teams traded layups on the following possessions, but F&M began to pull away with Trebelev making a layup with two minutes left in the game. From that point, McCrea made a jumper and Neville sank four free throws down the stretch to complete the comeback victory.

Franklin & Marshall shot an impressive 54.55 percent (6-of-11) from the field in the final quarter to bring its overall field goal percentage to 37.1 percent (23-of-62).

Trebelev led the Diplomats in scoring with 14 points, while also grabbing five rebounds and one steal. Wilburn earned her third-consecutive double-double and the 13th double-double of her career with 11 points and 13 rebounds in the win. Neville also recorded her first-career double-double with 10 points and 10 assists in the victory. Rusas and McCrea also ended the game with double-digit figures as Rusas scored 11 points and McCrea notched 10 points in the contest.

Franklin & Marshall looks to continue its winning streak when it hosts No. 12 Gettysburg on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.