LANCASTER, Pa. – Lauren Pittman scored six goals to lead the No. 12 Franklin & Marshall women's lacrosse team to an 18-12 win during its Centennial Conference opener against Swarthmore on Saturday. That game also served as the team's home opener as F&M got off to a 1-0 start in Centennial Conference play.
Pittman was one of five players who tallied multiple goals on the day. Devyn Crone matched Pittman's team leading six points as she tallied four assists in addition to her two goals. Rose Dunne, Julie Carbon, and Myranda Beebe also scored multiple times versus the Garnet. Annie Marshall, Sophie Harris, Alexandra Proefrock, and Blaine Cosby all had two points with a goal and an assist to help pace the attack.
F&M built on its lead throughout much of the afternoon as the Diplomats won each of the first three quarters, highlighted by jumping out to an 11-5 lead after 30 minutes of action. Pittman had her hat trick wrapped up with over two minutes remaining in the opening quarter. Cosby opened the scoring, with Beebe adding to the early advantage after just 15 minutes.
Six different players found the back of the cage as the Diplomats' lead grew to 11-5 at the break. A 4-0 run featured tallies from Pittman, Crone, Carbon, and Dunne that pushed the lead to 9-2 before Marshall and Harris added their stamp to the scoresheet before the half.
Pittman wrapped up her dominating performance with two more goals during the third quarter as F&M's advantage grew to 14-7 after 45 minutes. Carbon additionally found the back of the goal for the second time that quarter. The Diplomats' largest lead was eight on two occasions early in the fourth as Dunne and Proefrock both scored during the first five minutes of the final period. Beebe and Crone would ultimately put the finishing touches on the 18-12 Centennial Conference-opening victory.
The Diplomats were very efficient in their attack as they scored on 18 of their 22 shots on goal. F&M also dominated the draw control, with a 22-8 advantage in starting possessions. Once again, it was Pittman who was the team leader with nine draw controls while Carbon added seven more.
Pittman epitomized the team's offensive efficiency as she scored six times on just seven shots on goal. Belle Dintino was the team leader with three ground balls in addition to causing a turnover. Sara DiGiovanni saw the majority of the action in goal as she made 10 saves before Rachel Jones was called on for three saves in the final minutes of regulation.
After opening conference play with a victory, the Diplomats will wrap up the non-conference portion of the regular season schedule this coming week with two more home games. Up first will be a 4 p.m. start against Rowan on Wednesday, March 25.
