MANCHESTER, N.H. – The Franklin Pierce women's basketball team suffered a 70-51 road defeat to Northeast-10 host Southern New Hampshire University on Sunday afternoon at the Stan Spirou Field House.

The Ravens drop to 5-7 (2-4 NE10) on the season with the loss, having now slipped in three of their last five matchups. The in-conference, in-state rival Penmen improve to 7-2 (4-1 NE10) on the year.

Pierce started the contest slowly, tallying just three field goals through the first five and a half minutes of the opening quarter. Through the entire ten minutes, Southern New Hampshire opened up a 26-10 advantage on the Ravens, who as a team struggled defensively to contain a relentless Penmen attack, while also committing seven total turnovers. Offensively, Pierce's limited production was led by freshman guard Kenzie Sirowich (Seymour, Conn.), who tallied six points from the floor.

The second quarter provided the Ravens with some relief on both fronts, as the team held Southern New Hampshire off the board through the first five minutes. At the same time, the Ravens pulled together a 9-0 scoring run, which included their first three-point basket of the afternoon by Kenzie Sirowich, followed by four points from freshman Sara Macary (Naugatuck, Conn.) and a final layup by sophomore Keeley Toohey (McRae, Australia). The result pulled Pierce back into the action trailing 26-19, but the Penmen returned to their offensive ways in the bottom half of the quarter, finishing the half with a 15-2 run for a 41-21 lead at the break.

The Ravens and Penmen traded chances in the early goings of the second half, with Pierce trying to claw back into the contest and Southern New Hampshire attempting to maintain the lead. Over the course of the final five minutes of the third quarter, freshman Sara Macary kept the Ravens in the fight with all eight points scored, in total claiming ten of the team's total 14 in the quarter. Despite this, Southern New Hampshire continuously matched the Ravens step for step, and ultimately expanded upon their lead, 59-35 heading into the final frame.

The fourth quarter emerged as the best of the afternoon for Pierce, who outscored the Penmen for the first time in the contest, 16-11. At the 6:18 mark of the frame, Kenzie Sirowich cashed in on her second three-point field goal of the contest, before combining with junior Ines Gimenez Monserrat (Mallorca, Spain) for a total of eight points over the final five minutes of regulation. Despite the advantage, Franklin Pierce could not make a deep enough cut into their deficit in the fourth quarter as SNHU's defense completed the task at hand, pulling away with the 70-51 victory.

Kenzie Sirowich led Pierce with a career-high 20 points, adding in seven rebounds and four assists while shooting 8-of-13 from the floor. Sara Macary added 14 points and five rebounds in the effort, and Ines Gimenez Monserrat chipped in 12 points and six assists. As a team, the Ravens shot 22-of-60 (36.7%) in field goals, securing only six points from three-range with both belonging to Sirowich.

The Ravens will resume NE10 play on New Year's Day at Bentley University, with the Sunday contest scheduled for a 1:30 p.m. tipoff.