Women's basketball: Diplomats advance to Centennial Conference semis

There have been some pretty good women's basketball teams at Franklin & Marshall College over the last decade and a half.

There was a 20-win team, another that won 19 and another, 17.

None of those three, however, could accomplish what this season's team did Wednesday night. That is, win a Centennial Conference playoff game.

Using a swarming defense and strong support from the bench, the Diplomats defeated Ursinus, 61-49, to advance to Saturday's semifinals.

In the Centennial Conference's previous 17 seasons, F&M earned a playoff berth seven times but, each time, it was one and done.

"The momentum we've had over the past couple of games that carried us into this game made a big difference for us," said first-year head coach Kirsten Richter. "The confidence we gained over the past couple of games really made a difference."

Two things got the Diplomats (14-12 overall) going in the right direction in the first half.

First, Ursinus' leading scorer, Lindsay Teuber, was held scoreless. A combination of early foul trouble — she played eight minutes in the first half — and the defense of Amy Chabitnoy and Alison Menna, shut her down. Teuber finished with 14 points, scoring all of her points in the second half, most of them after F&M had a semi-comfortable lead.

"My focus was to stay in front of her, between her and the basket," said Chabitnoy, one of two F&M seniors who saw her career extended.

Second, when F&M guard Alexa Barbush sat with two early fouls (both on charging calls), Elizabeth Snyder stepped in. All she did was stick a pair of treys midway through the half to give F&M a 17-11 lead. She finished with a game-high 18 points on 6-for-11 shooting.

But it wasn't just Snyder off the bench. Kristina McCarthy and Emma Lisle, a pair of freshmen, did not play as if awed by the importance of the game. McCarthy finished with seven rebounds and Lisle six.

"Our defensive intensity and rebounding kept us in it no matter who was on the floor," Richter said. "Even when we went through a few scoring droughts, our defense and rebounding really helped us out."

That F&M defense limited the Bears (15-11) to 14.8 percent shooting in the first half.

Junior forward Megan Pauley was a key for the Diplomats in the second half. She finished with 13 points and 13 rebounds, picking up her second double-double of the season. Her 3-pointer and successive feeds to teammates on transition hoops five minutes into the second half pumped F&M's lead to 41-25, too much for the Bears to overcome down the stretch.

"My teammates were giving me good looks, so I took those shots," Pauley said. "You try not to force things. I was just trying to do what I can."

Up next for F&M is a semifinal matchup with CC regular-season champ Johns Hopkins, at 3 p.m. Saturday at Hopkins.

"We're ready and so excited for Saturday," said Menna, the other senior. "Our team is special in that we have great chemistry on and off the court. That's what led to the win (tonight)."

kfreeman@lnpnews.com