LANCASTER, Pa. –  No. 19 Franklin and Marshall College used a 6-1 run spanning the second and third periods to gain the upper-hand and post a 13-8 victory over seventh-ranked Gettysburg College in Centennial Conference men's lacrosse action at Shadek Stadium Wednesday night.
 
Gettysburg (7-3, 1-1 CC) saw its four-game winning streak snapped at the hands of Franklin and Marshall (6-3, 2-0 CC). The Diplomats won 19-of-25 face-offs and held leads in shots (38-29) and ground balls (35-26).
 
Junior Brian Kolen (Bridgewater, N.J./Bridgewater-Raritan) led the Gettysburg offense with three goals and an assist, while senior Blake Gray (Reisterstown, Md./McDonogh School) tossed in a pair of goals. Junior Michael McCormick (Lorton, Va./Paul VI Catholic) dished out four assists. Junior Christian Atalese (Long Valley, N.J./West Morris Central) recorded three caused turnovers, while junior Mitch Wykoff (Fairfield, Conn./Fairfield Ludlowe) tracked down four ground balls. Freshman goalie Scott MacMillan (Berwyn, Pa./Conestoga) managed eight saves and four ground balls.
 
Tucker McBride led the F&M attack with five points on a goal and four assists. Kevin Mollihan hit the back of the net four times, while Luke Keating added three goals and one assist. Diplomat goalie Luke Mutterer came up with 10 saves.
 
Gettysburg seized the lead with three of the game's first four goals. Kolen scored off the opening face-off six seconds into the contest and after F&M's Blake Target tallied his team's first tally, sophomore Kadin Kightlinger (Purcellville, Va./Bishop O'Connell) and Kolen went back-to-back to give the Bullets a 3-1 edge with five minutes left in the first quarter. Mollihan tossed in the next two goals to send the teams into the second quarter tied 3-3.
 
Once again, the Bullets opened the second quarter with a goal off the face-off as Kolen dished it off to Gray for a score eight seconds into the period. Mutterer kept Gettysburg at bay with a pair of saves over the next five minutes, with his second stop leading to a goal by Spencer Hall just nine second later to tie the game again.
 
Luke Keating gave the Diplomats a 5-4 edge with a man-up goal, but Kolen blasted home the equalizer off a feed by McCormick with 3:53 left in the first half. The teams exchanged turnovers before Target netted another goal to give the hosts a 6-5 lead at the break.
 
Franklin and Marshall padded its lead with the first three goals of the third quarter. Gray halted the run with a score off a feed from McCormick with 9:40 to play, but Mollihan gave his team a four-goal lead (10-6) with a tally less than three minutes later. The two teams combined for nine turnovers in the remaining minutes of the period, while the opposing goalies each recorded one save.
 
After the Diplomats won the first face-off of the fourth quarter, Keating put his team ahead 11-6. The Bullets blanked the hosts over the next 10 minutes, allowing the offense to make a run. Senior Andrew Garstka (Springfield, Va./Paul VI Catholic) and sophomore Jack Fletcher (Charlotte, N.C./Providence Day School) scored back-to-back goals to pull Gettysburg within three (11-8) with 4:46 to go.
 
The Bullets missed a shot on their next possession and the Diplomats answered with two quick goals by Jarrett Donaghy and Jack Beatty just seven seconds apart to set the final margin.
 
Gettysburg visits Muhlenberg College (8-1, 1-0 CC) Sunday at 2 p.m.