GETTYSBURG, Pa. – Gettysburg trailed by only three at the half, but Franklin & Marshall College pulled away in the second period and handed the Bullets a 68-53 setback in the Centennial Conference (CC) opener for both teams Tuesday evening in Bream Gym.
 
Senior forward Matt England (Warrington, Pa./Holy Ghost Prep) registered his second-straight double-double to lead the Bullets (1-2, 1-1 CC), finishing with 13 points and 10 rebounds to go with a career-high four steals. Sophomore guard Nick Lord (Millersville, Pa./Penn Manor) scored in double figures for the third game in a row, netting 11 points, while freshman center Avery Close (Phoenixville, Pa./Phoenixville) added eight points and eight rebounds off the bench.
 
Matthew Tate and Brandon Federici combined for 40 points for the Diplomats (4-0, 1-0 CC), who outscored Gettysburg 37-25 in the second half. Tate scored 22 points and shot 4-for-7 from 3-point range while also pocketing five steals. Federici notched 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
 
It was a back-and-forth game in the opening half, which featured three ties and four lead changes. F&M jumped to an 8-2 lead before the Bullets answered with a 6-0 spurt. Gettysburg took its first lead when sophomore guard Danny Duffey (Huntingdon Valley, Pa./Lower Moreland) converted a driving lay-up that made it 12-11 with 13:23 on the clock.
 
Gettysburg used a 5-0 spurt to push the lead to three (17-14) with 11:29 showing following an England 3-pointer and another Duffey lay-in. But the Diplomats answered with a 5-0 spurt to reclaim the lead.
 
A lay-up from Close pulled Gettysburg even at 19-all with 8:22 remaining, but Tate drilled back-to-back 3-pointers to put F&M ahead to stay for the remainder of the half. However, the Bullets held the Dips to one field goal over the last five minutes of the period and trailed just 31-28 at the intermission.
 
Federici led all players with 14 points at halftime while England posted 10 points and eight rebounds in the opening stanza.
 
Matt Groll dropped in a lay-up for F&M 15 seconds into the second half, but Lord and Duffey answered with back-to-back triples to give the Bullets a 34-33 lead. However, Tate answered with a lay-up to give the Diplomats the lead for good.
 
A fast-break bucket from junior guard Alec Warren (Medford, N.J./Shawnee) pulled the Bullets to within 37-36 with 16:51 left, but that's when F&M used a 12-3 run to open up its first double-digit lead. A lay-up from junior center Luke Cooper (Medford, N.J./Shawnee) made it an eight-point game with 10:48 left, but J.C. McGrath converted a lay-up with 9:01 left to push F&M's lead into double digits and the Diplomats pulled away down the stretch.
 
Gettysburg returns to action on Sunday, when it visits York (Pa.) College at 3 p.m. in a non-conference tilt.