LANCASTER, Pa. – Lydia Cassilly recorded her 200th career point on Saturday for the No. 5 Franklin & Marshall women's lacrosse team as the Diplomats (7-2, 2-0 CC) scored the first 11 goals and never looked back during a 16-3 Centennial Conference win against Swarthmore (7-2, 0-2 CC). Saturday's contest was also memorable as it gave the Diplomats a chance to honor their 2023 Centennial Conference Championship and Final Four team during halftime of the men's lacrosse game against the Garnet.
Cassilly, a junior, finished with a team-high five points as she registered one of the Diplomats' three hat tricks. She finished with four goals and one assist, while Gillian Brennan and Lauren Pittman also scored three times. Eight different players in total found the back of the cage for the Diplomats who did not allow a goal until the 4:38 mark of the second quarter and were leading 12-1 at the half.
It took until there was exactly four minutes remaining in the first quarter before the Diplomats finally broke through on the scoreboard. However, they would score five times during those four minute before adding seven more during the second quarter. Lane Lambeth opened the scoring and added her second goal of the afternoon early in the second quarter.
Brennan had the game's second goal and added two more tallies during the second half to finish her hat trick during the first 30 minutes. Pittman also had her hat trick wrapped up by the 11:31 mark of the second quarter, while Devyn Crone and Kate McLam added goals to the Diplomats' attack during the first half half.
With two goals and an assist in the first half, Cassilly registered her 200th point with 11:53 to play in the third quarter. She would end up tallying both of F&M's third quarter goals to give the Diplomats a 14-2 lead heading into the final quarter. Those final 15 minutes saw Avery Briggs and Skylar Holmes add their names to the scoresheet of the 16-3 final.
Franklin & Marshall dominated with a commanding 43-6 advantage in shots, featuring a 30-6 advantage in shots on goal. The Diplomats also won the ground ball battle by a 20-11 margin while winning 12 of the 22 draws. Pittman collected a team-high four ground balls and was one of three Diplomats who caused multiple turnovers, joining Madison Bray and Sophia Geibel. Megan Bizub led all players with a game-high six draw controls. With the majority of the action taking place in the attacking zone, Alyssa Moran was called on to make just one save during the first half before Sara DiGiovanni took over the final 30 minutes in goal and added two more stops.
Women's lacrosse returns home this week for two more Centennial Conference matchups as the Diplomats welcome McDaniel (Wednesday; 4 p.m.) and Ursinus (Saturday; 12 p.m.) to Shadek Stadium before traveling to Salisbury next Sunday for a 1 p.m. start in Maryland.
