The St. John Fisher College women's basketball team is off to its best start since the 2005-06 season after taking a 67-53 victory over host Elmira College on Saturday afternoon. The Cardinals improve to 2-0 in conference 8 play and 9-2 overall while the Soaring Eagles fall to 0-2 and 3-6, respectively.  

Elmira started off strong in the Empire 8 contest, taking the first basket and maintaining the lead for a solid seven minutes.

Fisher took the lead for the first time when Emily Piacentini stole the ball and netted a 3-pointer. The sophomore guard made two more baskets – a 3-pointer and a layup – to give Fisher a five-point lead at 12-7 with 11:35 left in the opening half.

Sydney Bloomstein cushioned the Cardinals' lead with a jumper to make it a 14-7 game. Fisher saw its biggest lead in the first half at 30-14 with 2:16 left and the Cardinals would cruise to halftime, leading 35-20.

The Cardinals built upon their lead in the second half, taking an 18-point advantage after a PIacentini layup with 8:25 left in the game.

Piacentini finished with a team-best 16 points and three steals. Three other Cardinals scored in double-digits: Mary Kate Cusack with 15 points and a team-best five steals, Bridget Carney with 14 points and Portia Velasco with 10 points. Bloomstein grabbed a team-high nine boards with seven minutes.

The Cardinals face host Ithaca College at 6 p.m. Tuesday in another Empire 8 Conference match-up.