NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. (February 20, 2016) -- The Franklin Pierce University women's basketball team played a neck-and-neck game early on Saturday, but a second-quarter run by the Merrimack Warriors stood as the difference, as the Ravens fell in the Northeast-10 match-up at Hammel Court, 69-51.

The Ravens record now stands at 13-12 overall and 10-10 in conference while Merrimack advances to 13-13 overall and 9-11 in conference.

The first quarter remained neck-and-neck, as every bucket the Ravens were able to put in saw the Warriors answer right back. Senior forward Kara Charette (Fairhaven, Mass.) scoring the first 10 Ravens points on the day. With just over a minute to go, freshman guard Hannah Neild sank her free throws to tie the game 12-12, and then senior center Madison Ward split a pair of free throws in the final 30 seconds to push the Warriors ahead, 13-12, heading into the second quarter.

Early in the second, Charette and senior guard Natalie Bastian (Branford, Conn.) connected, as Charette found the backboard for a layup and Bastian sank a three to tie the score again, 17-17. Scoring paused until a three-point shot by senior guard Ashley Weissmann re-gained the lead for Merrimack, 20-17. This would be the start of a 12-2 run by the Warriors, with senior guard Caitlyn Garger recording a key three during the run, which left Merrimack out front, 29-19, at the five-minute mark.

The Ravens were able to keep a steady stream of points from there, but the Warriors were able to keep up. With 20 seconds to go, senior guard Susie French (Greenland, N.H.) sank a three to cut the deficit to 35-28 going into the second half.

The second half started with Bastian and senior guard Dyamond Gardner (Cambridge, Mass.) connecting for layups, but Weissmann sank another three to further the Warrior lead. Scoring went into a defensive lock until just over five minutes to go, when Charette and sophomore guard Jemma Thacker (Aldgate, Australia) were able to connect to break the lull, though the Warriors still led, 40-36.

The quarter would end with senior forward Amanda Hoover making back-to-back layups to cap a 10-1 run and push the Warriors further ahead, 50-37.

On the Franklin Pierce side of things, the final quarter started with a Thacker triple to make it 52-40, but Garger followed right behind with back-to-back jump shots and Weissmann hit back-to-back threes to make it 62-44. It left the Ravens with a deficit which they could not make up, as they fall to the Warriors, 69-51.

Leading the scoring for the Ravens was Charette with 23 points on the day. The team shot from 35.2% (19-54) from the field and hit just half of their 20 free throw attempts.

Leading Merrimack was Weissmann with 15 points on the afternoon. The Warriors shot 44.4% (24-54) in the field and 83.3% (15-18) in free throws, with 44 rebounds (to just 27 for the Ravens) and 28 points off the bench.

The Ravens return home for Senior Night on Tuesday, Feb. 23 at 5:30 p.m. in the Fieldhouse in Rindge.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce women's basketball apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).