FRANKLIN, Ind. – The Earlham College women's basketball team returned to action with a 68-58 loss at Franklin College on New Year's Eve. 

Neely Trenshaw led the offense with 17 points with three rebounds and three steals. Jay Bright controlled the paint with 14 points, a team-high seven rebounds, and four steals. Alexis Gibson reached double-digits for the fourth consecutive game with 15 points and six rebounds. 

Even with a low showing in the fourth quarter, the Grizzly offense was efficient from the floor with a 43% field goal percentage. 

After tying the game at nine midway through the first quarter off of a layup from Bright, the Quakers fell behind on a 9-2 run by Franklin. The Grizzlies led 18-13 heading into the first break. 

Earlham came back in the opening minutes of the second quarter with a 5-1 run to tie the game at 19. The Grizzlies responded with a 6-0 run over the next minute. Amari Bradford hit a layup with six seconds remaining in the half to bring the score to 31-26 with Franklin on top at the half. 

Back-to-back 3-pointers by Trenshaw and Gibson put the Quakers on top 32-31 in the opening minutes of the second half. Franklin then went on a 12-0 run over the next three minutes to lead 43-32. Franklin would go on to lead 57-37 by the end of the quarter. 

A 10-0 run by the Quakers in the middle of the fourth quarter brought life back to the offense when it was needed. The Quakers recovered, but could not overcome the third quarter dropoff. Earlham outscored Franklin 6-4 in the final three minutes of the game. 

The Quakers will be back on the court in Druley Performance Gym on Wednesday against Transylvania. Tip-off is slated for 2 pm.