LANCASTER, Pa. – The Franklin & Marshall women's lacrosse team closed out an undefeated home regular season on Wednesday night as the Diplomats topped Dickinson by a 16-6 score inside Shadek Stadium. It was also a night for two seniors to hit personal milestones as seniors Gillian Brennan and Madison Bray registered the 200th and 100th points of their respective careers.
Needing just one point for the Century mark, Bray accomplished that feat when she scored an advantage goal just under four minutes into the contest which was fittingly enough set up by Brennan. Brennan hit her personal milestone with 90 seconds to go in the first half as she had three goals and two assists during the first 30 minutes of play which also gave the hosts their first double-digit lead of the night.
Brennan kept the attack going in the second half as she finished her evening with a team-leading seven points on four goals and three assists. Lauren Pittman matched her teammate with four goals under the lights, while Lane Lambeth recorded another hat trick behind three more goals.
The Diplomats scored the first two goals of the game and 10 of the first 11 overall to take a 10-1 lead just under five minutes into the second quarter. Lydia Cassilly was another multi-goal scorer for F&M on Wednesday as she tallied twice during the 7-0 run which spanned the 8:29 mark of the opening period through the 10:29 point of the second quarter. Kate McLam additionally added her name to the scoresheet during that stretch before the Red Devils scored their first goal of the second period with 9:54 remaining before regulation.
Franklin & Marshall closed the first half on a 3-1 run to take a 13-3 lead into the half, with Claire Book adding her name to the list of goal scorers just before the break. The hosts saw that lead drop to single digits just once before Brennan added her final goal and assist of the game during the third period.
On the strength of a 28-8 advantage in shots during the first 30 minutes, the Diplomats finished the Centennial Conference contest with a 36-21 edge in total shots, while owning a dominant 18-6 advantage in draw controls. Alyssa Moran was strong in goal as she stopped seven of the 12 shots on goal she faced before Sara DiGiovanni made one more save during her appearance in the middle of the fourth quarter.
In addition to her hat trick, Lambeth was very strong on the restarts as she secured six draw controls, with Sarah Bowyer and Pittman each adding four to F&M's commanding advantage. Defender Belle Dintino was outstanding in transition as she caused five turnovers and collected three ground balls while the Diplomats held Dickinson to 13-of-20 on its clearing attempts. Adding to her own milestone night, Bray collected a team-best five ground balls.
Tonight's result officially wrapped up the regular season as Saturday's previously scheduled game with Bryn Mawr has been declared a no contest with the Owls unable to field enough players due to injury. Nevertheless, the team will have a chance to celebrate the eight members of its senior class before hosting an intrasquad scrimmage at 12 p.m. as the defending Centennial Conference Champions prepare for another deep postseason run in the coming weeks.
