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LANCASTER, PA – Forward Emily Weaver (Sr., Frederick, MD/Calverton School) scored a game high 19 points and pulled down nine rebounds to lead four Diplomats in double-digits as the Franklin & Marshall College women’s basketball team advanced to the title game of the 18th Annual F&M Tip-Off Tournament with a 73-67 win over Elmira College. Franklin & Marshall (1-0) opened the game up with a 9-0 run over the first 2:34 of play and led 20-10 with 12:44 left in the first half before the Soaring Eagles took off on an 8-0 run to slice the margin to two points. F&M’s Miriam Marcis (Fr., Flemington, NJ/Hunterdon Central) hit a jumper to push the lead out to four points, but Elmira countered as Brittany Morse hit a pair of free throws and Mary Symonds put back a missed shot to give the Eagles a 24-22 lead with 7:51 remaining in the half. The teams traded the lead until guard Dana Johns (Sr., York, PA/Eastern York) made a three-pointer with 3:59 remaining in the half to put the Diplomats in front 35-33. The teams exchanged baskets as Elmira cut the lead to 38-37, but Franklin & Marshall went on a 7-2 run to close out the half and carry a 45-39 lead into halftime. Following a jumper by Weaver to push the margin to eight points to open the second half, Elmira trimmed the lead to four as Bridget Catanese and Marcia Coakley put in lay-ups. However, Franklin & Marshall went on a 7-2 run to take a 54-45 lead with 12:32 remaining in the game as the Eagles could not overcome the margin to fall by six points. For F&M, guard Christy Strunk (Sr., Pittsburgh, PA/North Allegheny) added 11 points, forward Brittany Braxton (So., Pearl River, NY/Nanuet) chipped in 12 with seven rebounds and Johns tacked on 13 with five steals, six rebounds and three assists. Catanese led the Eagles with 18 points and five rebounds, while guard Marcia Coakley added 11 points and a game high five assists, as the Eagles held a 47-36 rebounding advantage over Franklin & Marshall. The Diplomats will now face Widener University in the tournament title game as the Pioneers defeated UMass-Dartmouth 86-54 in the other first round game. Overall, Widener never trailed in the game as the Pioneers jumped out to an 8-0 lead and never looked back as UMass-Dartmouth failed to cut the margin below six points the rest of the way. For Widener, center Celeste Baumgardner led the way with 26 points as she made 11-of-15 from the field and four-of-six at the charity stripe, while forward Chelsea Luhta added 25 points and seven rebounds in the effort. Guard Keri Augenstein led the Corsairs with 15 points and five assists, while forward Vasiliki Palantzas chipped in 13 points and four boards. The tournament will conclude on November 20 as UMass-Dartmouth and Elmira meet in the consolation game at 1:00 p.m., while F&M and Widener will clash in the title tilt at 3:00 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults, $1 for adults and children six and under are admitted free.
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