LANCASTER, Pa. – The Franklin & Marshall women's basketball team (9-4, 2-1 CC) overpowered Haverford (8-5, 0-3 CC), 60-52, in Wednesday afternoon's Centennial Conference (CC) contest. F&M outscored the Fords, 21-12, in the fourth quarter to secure the win in the Diplomats' first home game in over a month.

F&M jumped out to an 11-9 lead through the first seven minutes of the contest. Hailey Cabanas extended the lead to five as she splashed a three-pointer at the 2:25 mark. Haverford responded with a layup, but Gia Sioutis connected on a free throw to close the opening quarter with the Diplomats holding a 15-11 advantage.

The Fords narrowed the score to 15-13 to start the second quarter. F&M responded with Lizzie Neville draining a three-pointer and Sioutis knocking down a jumper to push the lead to seven. From that point, Haverford went on a 10-2 run to close the second frame with a 23-22 edge over the Diplomats entering halftime.

The teams traded baskets with Haverford holding a 29-24 lead three minutes into the third quarter. Sioutis and Lauren Rusas connected from midrange on back-to-back possessions to cut the deficit to one. Haverford grew its lead back to 36-32, but Kayla McCrea made a layup to get F&M within two. A jumper from Fiona Reckner tied the game at 36-36 with 3:23 remaining in the quarter. Two possessions later, McCrea drilled a three-pointer to give the Diplomats a 39-36 lead. However, Haverford closed the frame with four-unanswered points to take a 40-39 advantage into the final quarter.

The Diplomats started fast with a three-pointer from Neville giving F&M a two-point edge. Haverford tied the game at 42-42 with a jumper two-possessions later. Sioutis and Rusas both tallied jumpers to give the home team a four-point lead. Haverford worked the deficit to three points as F&M held a 48-45 advantage with 3:47 remaining in regulation. Rusas knocked down a free throw, followed by four-straight points from Sioutis to cushion the lead at eight. Haverford made a layup in response, but Rusas connected on a three-pointer and made a free throw on back-to-back possessions to hand F&M its largest lead of the day at 10.

Franklin & Marshall shot 33.9 percent (21-of-62) from the field and 41.2 percent (7-of-17) from beyond the arc in the game.

Neville led the Diplomats with 15 points, eight rebounds, and four assists. The senior needs just eight points to become the 19th player in program history to surpass 1,000 career points.

Sioutis followed with 14 points, seven rebounds, and two steals in the win. Rusas ended the day with 12 points, four rebounds, and two three-pointers.

Franklin & Marshall now sets its sights on McDaniel, a team receiving votes in the national polls, as the Diplomats and Green Terror square off on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.