Rindge, N.H. (November 29) -- No. 2 Franklin Pierce proved to be too much for Saint Anselm on Sunday afternoon as the Hawks dropped a 66-42 final to the Ravens in Northeast-10 action. Saint Anselm falls to 1-4 overall and 0-3 in NE-10 action with the loss.

The Hawks jumped out to an early lead behind a three-pointer from sophomore Epiphany Smith (Springdale, Ark.) and a layup from classmate Megan Howard (St. Paul, Minn.). Franklin Pierce came on strong though with an 11-0 run over the next 4:23 and seized a 13-5 lead with 14:08 on the clock. The Ravens built the lead to double digits at 21-9 on a three by senior Kirsten Doldoorian (Brimfield, Mass.) and held a 29-15 advantage with 7:59 left in the opening half. The two teams played evenly over the last eight minutes of the half and it was a 39-24 Ravens lead at the halftime break. Smith led all scorers with 14 points for Saint Anselm, while All-American Johannah Leedham (Ellesmere Port, England) led the Ravens with 13 points. Doldoorian also added nine points for the Ravens, knocking down a trio of three-pointers.

In the second half, the Hawks cut the lead down to 13 a number of times, including at 53-40 with 5:44 left in the game. The Ravens offense sparked a 13-2 run to close out the game and give the hosts their fourth victory of the season.

Three Hawks finished in double figures, led by 14 points from Smith. Freshman Morgan Frame (Waterville, Maine) had a career-high 12 points and a team-best six rebounds in 29 minutes off the bench, while Howard added 10 points. Leedham led the Ravens with 22 points, while Doldoorian added 11.

With the loss, the Hawks are 1-4 overall and 0-3 in the Northeast-10, while the Ravens improve to 4-0 overall and 2-0 in league play. Saint Anselm returns to action on Wednesday, December 2nd as the Hawks host Stonehill for a 5:30 p.m. start at Stoutenburgh Gym.