(Lancaster, Pa.) – The Dickinson football team suffered a second straight loss to Franklin & Marshall as the coveted Conestoga Wagon remained in Lancaster following a 35-14 setback to the Diplomats on Saturday.

The Diplomats were very opportunistic, opening the game with a 73-yard punt return to take a, 7-0 lead, early in the first quarter. They doubled the lead, scoring on a three-play drive after an interception to go up, 14-0, with 11:14 remaining in the opening quarter. E.J. Schneider completed a 14-yard pass to Jordan Zachery to cap the 41-yard drive.

The Devils answered on their next possession, scoring on a 31-yard strike from junior quarterback Cole Ahnell (Rockville, Md./Walter Johnson) to senior Colin Rodgers (Jamison, Pa./St. Joe's Prep) at the 8:38 mark.

The teams played scoreless through the second quarter, trading four punts during the period. The Diplomats drove to the Dickinson nine yard line, but the Red Devil defense held on fourth-and-one to take over possession.

Schneider completed a 20-yard pass and a 30-yard scoring strike to Tim Muller on the Diplomats opening possession of the second half. The Devils were able to answer once again, this time with a 25-yard touchdown pass to junior Eric Ondo (Richland, Pa./ELCO) with 7:44 remaining in the third quarter.

The defense came up big again as F&M went for it on fourth down from their own 45 yard line. The excitement was short-lived, however, as Chris DeStefano would intercept a pass and go 85 yards for another Diplomat touchdown, making the score, 28-14, with 2:55 to play in the third period.

F&M added another touchdown late in the fourth quarter for the final of, 35-14. A.J. Kolen capped a 10-play drive with 10 yard scoring run with just 1:46 on the clock.

Schneider led the way for F&M (3-2, 3-1 CC) with 276 yards passing. He completed 25-of-26 on the day, adding 56 yards rushing. Muller made seven catches for 109 yards while Paul McGann caught eight passes for 80 yards. Brendan Wengerter anchored the defense with a game-high 17 tackles.

Senior captain Michael Miller (Hainesport, N.J./Bishop Eustace) led the Red Devil defense with 12 tackles, including nine solo stops. Sophomore Jake Myers (Middletown, Del./St. Andrew's) added 11 tackles while Mark Manganaro (Horseheads, N.Y./Horseheads) added an interception and had four kick-off returns for 72 yards on the day.

Ahnell completed 12-of-18 passes for 166 yards while rushing for an additional 90. Todd Smolinsky (Lansdale, Pa./North Penn) made three catches for 48 yards while Rodgers added 45 yards on two receptions. Sophomore Cedric Madden (Norristown, Pa./Chestnut Hill Academy) averaged five yards per carry on eight attempts.

Dickinson has a bye next week before returning to action on Friday night, October 18^th. The Red Devils travel to Baltimore to face defending, Centennial Conference champion, Johns Hopkins at 7:00 pm on Homewood Field.