Franklin Pierce Tops Le Moyne 
to End Skid, 69-58
Ravens end three-game slide with second-half run 
as four net double-figures

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (January 22, 2005) – Franklin Pierce erased a seven-point deficit early in the second half and led by as much as 14 points in posting a 69-58 victory over Le Moyne College in Northeast-10 Conference women’s basketball action at Grant Court this afternoon.

            Four Franklin Pierce players scored in double-figures to aid in the Ravens stopping a season-long three-game losing streak. The Ravens were an identical 10-of-21 (47.6%) from the field in each half and canned five-of-ten from three-point range in the second half, while limiting Le Moyne to 34.8% (8-23) shooting from the floor over the final 20 minutes.            

Freshman point guard Stephanie Bergeron (Pointe Claire, Quebec/Dawson College) scored a season-high 14 points, aided by 7-of-7 shooting at the free-throw line, three assists and two steals. Junior Heather Jacobs (Stoughton, Mass./Stoughton) also registered 14 points (11 first half), which marks the fifth-straight game she has either led or shared the team lead in scoring.

            Freshman Josie Lidke (Chaska, Minn./Chaska) added 12 points, aided by 6-6 shooting at the line, two rebounds and three assists, while sophomore Mollie Stelmack (New Westminster, British Columbia/New Westminster) finished with 11 points (all second half), five rebounds and five assists. Sophomore Danielle D’Ettorre (Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario/St. Mary’s) chipped in nine points, a game-best eight boards, four steals and two assists.

            Senior Jennifer Feher (Depew, N.Y./Depew) and freshman Francesca Payne (Ballston Spa, N.Y./Bishop Maginn) each scored 14 points off the bench to lead Le Moyne. Feher also grabbed a team-best seven rebounds, while Payne collected four rebounds and three steals. Sophomore Lindsay Carr (Bronx, N.Y./Preston) added ten points and five assists.            

Franklin Pierce led nearly the entire first half, but Le Moyne took its first lead after two Payne free throws with 2:14 left in the stanza. The Dolphins led by as much as four on two occasions before settling for a two-point edge at the break.

            Le Moyne extended its lead to seven points (43-36) after a pair of free throws from Kim Wagoner (Cicero, N.Y./Cicero-North Syracuse) with 13:27 to play in regulation. Franklin Pierce, which forced 14 Dolphin turnovers in the stanza, then held the Dolphins scoreless over the next 11:26 in posting a 21-0 run to turn its deficit into a 14-point lead (57-43) with just over four-minutes to play after a Stelmack three-pointer.

            The Dolphins got back within nine points (57-48), after a Payne free-throw, but got no closer as Jacobs converted a conventional three-point play and the Ravens canned 10-of-11 free-throw attempts down the stretch to ice the victory.

                Franklin Pierce (9-7, 6-6 NE-10) returns to action on Tuesday when it hosts Saint Michael’s College at 5:30 p.m. Le Moyne (7-11, 3-10 NE-10) hosts Southern New Hampshire University on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.

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