The St. John Fisher College women's basketball jumped out to an 18-2 lead and never looked back, as the Cardinals cruised to a 79-59 win over visiting Hartwick College on Friday night in an Empire 8 Conference matchup.

With the win, Fisher improves to 21-3 overall and 14-1 in the Empire 8.   The Cardinals have won seven straight and are 16-1 in their last 17.

Fisher led 5-2 with just under seven minutes left in the opening period, but took control of the game over the next four minutes, as the Cardinals went on a 13-0 to take an 18-2 lead.  Senior Mary Kate Cusack scored eight points during the run, including two 3-pointers.

Fisher led 23-7 at the end of the first quarter with the Cardinals shooting 8-for-12 from the floor with five 3-pointers (three from Cusack and two from Emily Piacentini).

Hartwick opened the second quarter with a 10-0 run, thanks to eight points from Taylor Vonasek.   Fisher would take a 34-21 lead going into the second half, despite shooting 4-of-22 (18.1%) from the floor, including 0-for-9 from beyond the arc.

The Hawks would cut the Fisher-lead down to single digits early in the third quarter at 34-25, but Fisher would answer with back-to-back 3-pointers – one from Cusack and one from
Caroline Robinson to put the Cardinals back in control.

Cusack would finished the game with 24 points, including five 3-pointers. She also led her team with six assists.  Piacentini finished with a career-high 19 points, while adding four rebounds and team-high three steals.

Robertson tallied 13 points and seven boards, while fellow sophomore Nicole Robinson snagged a team-high nine rebounds.

Fisher will close out the regular season at 4 p.m. on Saturday and will host Stevens Institute of Technology.   The Ducks (19-5, 15-0) are currently ranked No. 4 in the NCAA Division III East Region, while Cardinals are ranked sixth.