HOUGHTON, N.Y. – The St. John Fisher College women's basketball team won its fifth straight game and ninth in its last 10 contests as the Cardinals maintained hold of first place in the Empire 8 Conference standings with a 68-58 win at Houghton College in an Empire 8 clash inside the Nielsen Center.  With the win, Fisher improved to 12-5 overall and 7-1 in the Empire 8 standings.  Houghton, which had won five of its last six games entering Tuesday's matchup, fell to 10-8 overall and 6-3 against conference opponents. 
 
Trailing by six points after 10 minutes of play, Fisher went on the offensive in the second period and produced a 10-2 run to claim a 25-23 cushion.  From there, the lead would change hands two more times until the Cardinals closed out the frame with eight unanswered points sparked by back-to-back 3-pointers from Chelsea Repard and Katy McInerney to head into halftime with a 35-29 advantage.
 
Coming out of the break, Fisher continued to fire on all cylinders as the Cardinals strung together 11 consecutive points to begin the third quarter highlighted by four points from Sydney Masna to hold a double-digit lead, 46-29. 
 
As the quarter wore on, Fisher would build a 21-point lead, 55-34, after a pair of free throws from Masna and would head to the fourth holding a 17-point edge as the Highlanders closed out the stanza with nine of the period's final 14 points.
 
In the final quarter, Fisher continued to control the tempo until the final three minutes as Houghton was able to climb to within eight points courtesy of a 9-0 burst to make it a 64-56 contest.  After calling a timeout to regroup, Fisher worked the clock and sank its final four attempts from the free throw line to hold on for the win.
 
In all, four different players reached double figures in scoring led by Erin Hulbert's 17 points on 5-of-9 shooting.  The reigning Empire 8 Player of the Week finished with six assists, five rebounds and three steals in the win.  Nicole Robinson added 15 points, six rebounds and a game-high five blocked shots while Caroline Robertson chipped in 11 points. Masna contributed 12 points for Fisher and Liga Astra Kalnina pulled down 13 rebounds including four on the offensive glass.
 
The Cardinals will embark on another test in conference play at 8 p.m. on Friday when they host The Sage Colleges in a pivotal Empire 8 bout inside Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium.