LANCASTER, Pa. – The Franklin & Marshall women's basketball team (12-10, 5-6 CC) eased past Bryn Mawr (5-16, 1-10 CC), 71-42, in Saturday afternoon's Centennial Conference (CC) contest at the Mayser Center. The Diplomats jumped out to a big lead, outscoring the Owls, 21-9, in the second quarter. From there, F&M scored 30 points and held Bryn Mawr to just 16 points in the second half to earn the win.

Before the game, the Franklin & Marshall women's basketball team honored Hailey Cabanas, Lizzie Neville, and Lauren Rusas on Senior Day.

A back-and-forth first quarter brought the score to 17-14 with Bryn Mawr in front with 1:39 remaining in the frame. Gianna Modica splashed a three-pointer to tie the game with 26 seconds on the clock. A buzzer-beater three-pointer from Mackenzie Ward gave F&M a 20-17 advantage through the first 10 minutes of play.

The Diplomats grew their lead with 16-straight points to start the second quarter. Kayla McCrea made a jumper and drilled a three-pointer to give F&M a 25-17 lead two minutes into the period. Cabanas made a layup, followed by Neville connecting on a three-pointer to give the hosts a 13-point cushion. Fiona Reckner recorded layups on back-to-back possessions to give the Diplomats a 34-17 advantage halfway through the quarter. Neville capped the run by making a layup to push the F&M lead to 19. Bryn Mawr reduced the deficit to 14, but Neville chipped in a free throw in the final seconds to give Franklin & Marshall a 41-26 lead entering halftime.

The Owls reduced F&M's lead to 43-31 to start the second half, but the Diplomats took over from there. Neville and Gia Sioutis made layups on consecutive possessions to grow the margin back to 16. After Ward made a layup, Neville converted a four-point play to give the Diplomats a 22-point cushion with 4:27 left in the quarter. The teams traded baskets with Bryn Mawr making a free throw at the end of the period to give F&M a 55-34 lead after three quarters of action.

McCrea started the final frame by drilling a three-pointer, followed by Neville making a layup to extend the lead to 26. A jumper from McCrea and a layup from Cabanas made it a 30-point advantage three minutes into the quarter. A free throw from Cabanas at the 6:13 mark gave F&M a 31-point advantage for its largest lead of the game.

The Diplomats shot 39.7 percent (29-of-73) from the field and 30.8 percent (8-of-26) from beyond the arc. F&M outrebounded the Owls, 47-32, while also winning the turnover battle, 23-16.

Neville led the game with 22 points, while tallying six rebounds, four assists, and four steals. McCrea followed with 17 points and three three-pointers in the win. Cabanas finished the game with seven points, six rebounds, four assists, and two steals. Rusas registered seven points, four rebounds, and one steal in the victory.

Franklin & Marshall hits the road on Wednesday to take on Muhlenberg at 8:00 p.m.