LANCASTER, Pa. – An early lead sparked the No. 17 Ursinus College Field Hockey team to a 2-1 victory over Franklin & Marshall College on Wednesday evening from Tylus Field.
 

 
With the victory, Ursinus improves to 8-4 overall and 4-2 in Centennial Conference action, while the Diplomats fall to 7-6 on the season and 4-2 in conference play. The victory snapped a three-game skid against the Diplomats with 15 of the last 16 matchups being decided by two goals or less dating back to 2014.

 
 
The Bears offense maintained much of the possession throughout the first stanza out shooting the Diplomats 6-0 in the period, including three opportunities on goal. Just 49 seconds into the contest, sophomore Kirsten Johnson tallied the opening shot just wide of the Diplomat goal. At the 3:21-mark, classmate Marie Brainard recorded the first Bear's shot on goal which was saved by the F&M defense but resulted in a penalty corner for the Bears. On the corner, Ursinus collected back-to-back shots, but each shot was blocked by the Franklin & Marshall defense. Senior Mary Lauren Franz and junior Lauren Sieczkowski fired the remaining two shots on goal in the period as the contest entered the second period tied at zero. At the 24:49-mark, Ursinus struck first as Franz assisted Brainard for the opening score to give Ursinus a one-goal lead. After forcing a Diplomat turnover, Franz drove towards the goal finding Brainard and her shot snuck past the goalie for her sixth score of the season. The Bears were awarded two penalty corners over the remainder of the half, while each defense held the opposing offenses without a shot and Ursinus entered halftime with a one-goal lead.
 
 
 
The Bears continued the offensive pressure to open the second half as they recorded the first five shots, before the Diplomats closed out the period with three of the last five scoring opportunities. Ursinus capitalized on their chances as they extended their lead to 2-0 at the 31:38-mark. After a corner opportunity escaped the circle, the ball was played back into the front of cage giving Ursinus a four-on-two advantage. Senior Amanda Groeling played a pass across the crease finding junior Gigi Testa for her fifth goal of the season. Ove the next four minutes, Ursinus recorded a trio of shots on goal before F&M responded with their opening goal cutting the Bears lead to 2-1. Franklin & Marshall intercepted a Bears pass, setting up a counterattack, and F&M's Caitlin Hoover blasted a shot just within the circle to bring their deficit to one. The Bears defense responded by denying four consecutive corners from the Diplomats and the contest entered the final stanza with Ursinus leading by one. The Bears tallied two shots in goal in the period, before turning away the final Diplomat chance at the 56:12-mark resulting in a 2-1 victory.
 

 
Ursinus held a 19-5 advantage in shots, a 13-4 lead in shots on goal, and a 9-4 edge in penalty corner opportunities. In goal, junior Adriana Palladinetti recorded the victory behind three saves, while F&M's Meghan Dole suffered the loss collecting 11 saves throughout the full time.
 

 
The Bears will return to action on Saturday as they celebrate Senior Day with a Centennial Conference matchup against Gettysburg College at noon.