BOX SCORE

The St. John Fisher College women's basketball team was denied in its effort to lock up a bid into the Empire 8 Conference Championship Tournament with a 54-51 loss to the Alfred University Saxons on Tuesday night at Manning & Napier Varsity Gym.

 

With just 40.9 seconds remaining, Kristen Taliento tied the game at 49 with a free throw. The junior forward initially missed the attempt, but an Alfred lane violation gave her a second chance to knot the score. The free throw capped a 7-0 run, and got the Cardinals back into the game after trailing by as many as 10 points on two separate occasions in the second half.

 

Alfred, who improved to 12-11 overall, 6-8 in the Empire 8, drained a 3-pointer from the left wing on its next possession to take the lead for good. Sophomore Colleen Maloney drew a foul and made both shots from the line to cut the lead back down to one on Fisher's next possession, but Saxon guard Lyndsay Murphy connected on a pair of attempts from the charity stripe to edge the Cardinals.

A desperation triple from Meagan Tubbs that would have given the Cardinals the victory sailed just wide at the buzzer. 

 

After allowing a 9-0 run to give the Saxons momentum to start the half, Fisher nearly overcame the deficit and sealed a berth into the four-team Conference Championship with a 16-6 spurt that covered 6:03 of the second half before Taliento tied the game.

 

Alfred used a 5-0 run in the first half to tie the score midway through, and took a four-point lead, 15-11, on a 3-pointer from Lisa Button. Mary Kate Comfort, who led all scorers with 16 points, brought the Cardinals back even with four points on consecutive trips. Comfort's baskets powered the Cardinals into a slim 21-20 lead at the half.

 

Colleen Maloney finished with 12 points, including a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line, while Taliento scored 11 points and grabbed eight rebounds.

 

Fisher (15-8 overall, 8-6 Empire 8) will return to action on Friday against Utica College, where the Cardinals will have another chance at earning a berth into the Conference Championship.