The Dickinson College women’s basketball team traveled to Lancaster, Pa to take on rival Franklin and Marshall College on Saturday, Feb. 21. The Red Devils topped the Diplomats in the season finale by a score of 79-58 at the Mayser Center.

First-year Kassidy Lesher started the Red Devils off well after an old-fashioned three point play before both teams traded baskets on their next possessions. Sophomore forwards Mary Martin and Jennifer Smith each chipped in their own buckets to give the Red Devils an early lead. Senior Leslie Bacile tried to get the Diplomat offense going after a tough reverse lay-up, but sophomore point guard Ellen Bair answered immediately with a strong take of her own along the baseline giving the Red Devils a 12-8 advantage.

Dickinson turned the ball over in each of their next three possessions, but a resilient defense allowed the Red Devils to hold onto their four-point lead. Franklin and Marshall took a timeout halfway through the opening half after junior Sam Kennedy knocked down a deep three pointer from the top of the key, extending the lead to seven.
The Diplomats responded and cut the lead to five before Bair showed off her spin move to convert on a tough finish in traffic. Franklin and Marshall went on their own run after the score was even due to a couple of lay-ups and turnovers by the Red Devils. First-year Myonie Williamson drained a three pointer to right the ship for Dickinson, despite being down by two at halftime.

The second half was an offensive showcase with both teams, trading baskets throughout the half. Dickinson saw contributions from Kennedy, Martin, Bair, Lesher and Williamson all mounting on the scoreboard. The Red Devils started to pull away after they were able to string together defensive stops and extend their lead to fourteen with 6:00 minutes left to play. The three senior Red Devils, Liz Schultz, Sarah Phillips, and Ashley Kinney closed out the season by scoring the last three buckets of the game.

Williamson scored a game high 20 points while connecting on four of five three pointers. Martin tallied 19 points and 11 rebounds and Lesher dominated on the glass by controlling a career best 18 rebounds. The Red Devils finished their season with a record of 7-17 overall and 4-14 in the Centennial Conference. Dickinson finished the year on a two game winning streak and has continued to show steady improvement throughout the year under first-year coach Katherine Bixby.

Martin led the team averaging 9 points and 7 rebounds on the year while Williamson and Kennedy each averaged seven and six, respectively. Lesher developed into a rebound force averaging seven boards a game. Dickinson fans should be excited about this up and coming program under Coach Bixby and look forward to even more success next year.