Lexington, Ky. - The Franklin College softball team lost a hard-fought 3-2 contest to No. 2 seed Anderson University in the first round of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament on Friday at Transylvania University.

The Grizzlies will play again later on Friday at 2 p.m. in an elimination contest against the loser in the other first round game between top seed Transylvania and No. 4 seed Hanover College.

Anderson, ranked sixth in the NCAA Central Regional rankings, scored two runs on a double in the fifth inning to take a 3-2 lead. The Grizzlies stranded the potential game-tying run on base in the seventh inning.

Franklin scored both of its runs in the fourth inning to break a scoreless game. Junior Savannah Blevins (Wilkinson, Ind./Eastern Hancock) hit a solo home run. A few batters later junior Jasmine Hanna (Frankfort, Ind./Clinton Prairie) connected on a run-scoring double to drive home senior Katie Struewing (Greenwood, Ind./Greenwood).

Anderson cut the deficit to 2-1 by scoring a run in the bottom of the fourth inning.