Box Score

SWARTHMORE, Pa. – Senior Elle Larsen scored 20 points, including five in the last minute, and grabbed eight rebounds to propel the Swarthmore College women's basketball team to a 65-57 victory over Franklin & Marshall on Wednesday, Jan. 7 at Tarble Pavilion.
 
In a tightly contested game that featured eight ties and 15 lead changes, freshman Melanie Ackerman hit a clutch three in the waning minutes to put the Garnet up 58-55 and ahead for good with 2:39 to play after receiving a pass from sophomore Maggie O'Neil. Larsen then made one of two free throws on the host's next possession and followed with a layup by putting back an Ackerman miss to give Swarthmore a 61-55 cushion and some breathing room with 46 seconds left.
 
After Leslie Bacile made a jumper to close the gap to 61-57, F&M was forced to foul and the Garnet came through at the charity stripe down the stretch. O'Neil and Larsen were each 2-for-2 from the line to seal the eight-point win.
 
The first half was tightly contested, as neither team led by more than four points through the first 20 minutes. Sophomore Jordyn Bell found Ackerman open for a trifecta that gave Swarthmore a 10-6 edge at the 13:11 mark, but the Diplomats fought back and scored six straight to take a 12-10 lead on a Caroline Studnicky jumper that was set up by Shannon O'Connor. The Garnet, however, went into the recess with a 30-28 lead thanks to getting two consecutive 3-pointers from junior Jessica Jowdy.
 
Franklin & Marshall (2-9, CC 0-5) was able to regain the lead in the second half and went ahead 42-37 when Leslie Bacile canned a pair of free throws. The Diplomats appeared to be in control when Emily Wetz drove in for a layup that made it 49-44 with 7:15 on the clock, but the Garnet once again came back. After Wetz nailed a 3-pointer to tie the score at 55s with three minutes remaining, Ackerman gave the Garnet all the momentum for the remainder of the game by sinking a 3-pointer off a feed from O'Neil on the right side.
 
Larsen netted 20 points by shooting 7-for-10 from the field and 6-for-8 from the line to lead the way for Swarthmore. Jowdy added 20 points, eight rebounds and four steals, while Ackerman and O'Neil contributed 12 and 11 points off the bench, respectively. Bell matched a career mark with a team-leading four assists.
 
Franklin & Marshall was paced by Wetz, who finished with 14 points and seven boards. Studnickyy added 11 points in a reserve role, and Erica Brown finished with 10 points, four rebounds, three helpers and two swipes.
 
Swarthmore (4-7, CC 1-4) continues Centennial Conference play when it visits Johns Hopkins on Saturday, Jan. 10 at 1 p.m.