The St. John Fisher College women's basketball team lost 81-72 in overtime to Hartwick College on Saturday at Fisher's Bobby Wanzer Court.
With the loss, Fisher is now 11-13 overall and 7-6 in the Empire 8 Conference, while Hartwick (21-3, 12-1) is tied for first in the Empire 8 Conference standings.
The Cardinals forced overtime by scoring the final five points of the second half. After a basket from Brooke Seavitt with 1:03 left made it 65-62, Fisher tied the game on the next possession. Camaryn Buckner grabbed an offensive rebound and kicked it out to Sydney Bloomstein, who tied the game up at 65-65 with a 3-pointer from the right side. Hartwick attempted to end the game in regulation, but Buckner blocked the shot in the lane as time expired.
Hartwick never trailed in overtime, as the Hawks were a perfect 11-for-11 from the foul line with Maria Foglia connecting on all 10 attempts from the charity stripe. With 37 seconds left in the extra period, Portia Velasco made it a three-point game with a runner in the lane, but Foglia and company were able to hold-off the rallying Cardinals.
Despite trailing 34-31 at the end of the first half, the Cardinals led most of the way, opening the period on a 14-4 run over the first 3:58. Hartwick didn't have its first lead until 3:28 left in the stanza when Foglia hit a trifecta to put the Hawks up 26-25. Over the next 2:23, the Hawks went on an 11-3 run to lead 34-28 before Sarah Stefanon hit a 3-pointer to send the teams to the locker rooms at 34-31. Velasco had a chance to knot the score as time winded down in the first but her shot rimmed out.
Velasco led the Cardinals with 22 points and five steals, while Buckner totaled 13 points and 10 boards. Meghan Soja also finished with a double-double, totaling 12 points, 11 rebounds and three steals.
Kate Purcell led the Hawks with 31 points, 14 rebounds and five steals. Foglia finished with 16 points, 11 rebounds and eight steals.
The Cardinals will wrap-up their regular season at 6 p.m. next weekend when they host East Ave Rival Nazareth College before competing in the Empire 8 Championship the following weekend. The night will be Senior Night for Fisher.
