PITTSFORD, N.Y. – This weekend, the St. John Fisher College women's basketball team will lace up its sneakers and begin its 46th season as the Cardinals travel to the North Country on Saturday to take on St. Lawrence in a non-conference tilt.  Expectations are high as head coach Melissa Kuberka's team is coming off its second straight appearance in the Empire 8 title game.

"This is a special group who has bought into our message of 'simple and selfless,'" added Kuberka who has amassed 40 wins over her first two seasons at the helm.  "The team doesn't care about minutes or scoring more than it does about our goal of succeeding as a team.  We might be young on paper, but the majority of this group knows what it's like to sit in a locker room after losing in the championship.  We want to get that taste out of our mouths and take the next step as a program. We have the players to do that the right way this season."

Experience is critical as the Cardinals gear up for another run at the postseason and Fisher is set to return 11 players from a team that led the Empire 8 in scoring defense (55.8), field goal percentage defense (.345) and rebounding (43.0) and was second overall in the conference in steals per game.

Despite the loss of two-time Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Year Erin Hulbert, Fisher is still loaded in both the front and back courts.  Sophomore Leah Koonmen is back for another season after having had a significant impact on both ends of the floor as freshman.  Koonmen led the team in scoring at 10.0 points per game while her 5.0 rebounds on average was third among her teammates.  Koonmen was also efficient from the floor as the Fairport native shot .442 from the field and knocked down nearly 80 percent of her free throw attempts on the year.   

In the front court, the Cardinals are unmatched in the Empire 8.  With speed, power and agility down low, Fisher grabbed 14 offensive rebounds per game a season ago while its 29.0 rebounds on average on the defensive end were tops among all conference programs.  Sophomores Ella Eckert, Julia Mertsock, Alyssa Ballou, Maisy Booth and Mallory Wood are set to play big roles as Eckert is coming off an Honorable Mention All-Conference nod last year.  Eckert led the team in rebounding at 7.8 boards per game and finished her freshman campaign with three double-doubles.  Wood and Mertsock were an effective combination as the duo paired up to average nearly 12 points and 9.0 rebounds per game.

Booth and Ballou are part of a deep bench as the pair combined to average nearly 16 minutes in 2018-19. 

In the back court, Fisher is led by senior Alex Reigle who played in 25 games last year including eight starts.  Reigle averaged 3.2 points and was fourth on the team in assists while her 35 steals on the defensive end helped to spark Fisher's fast break offense.  Miranda Lynch is also set to don the Cardinal and Gold again this year as the sophomore sharpshooter led the Cardinals with 37 3-point field goals as a freshman. 

Fisher will also look to three more returners in Lauren Robbins, Kylie Schlagenhauf and Amy Gardner to help bring allong five newcomers including Harper Mead, Riley Magin, Abbie Tabone, Anna Milham and Meg Porzio.

The Cardinals will play in 25 regular season games in all and Kuberka knows the importance of testing her team early and often.

"I intentionally made our nonconference schedule challenging because I believe in the idea that iron sharpens iron," she added.  "I want us to face challenges and adversity early so that we will grow.  We want to be one of the best teams, but how can we get to that point if we don't compete with the best?"

The season tips off on Saturday, November 9th at St. Lawrence as the Cardinals open the year with five consecutive road games.  After their non-conference tilt with the Saints, the Cardinals will travel to Boston, Mass. for a pair of games as part of the Emmanuel College Tip-Off Classic.  On November 16th, the team will meet Husson before taking on either Emmanuel or St. Joseph's – Brooklyn the following afternoon.

From there, Fisher is scheduled to compete in the annual Mark's Pizzeria Crosstown Shootout beginning with the University of Rochester on November 21st followed by RIT two nights later on November 23rd.

The Cardinals will play their home opener on Tuesday, November 26th against Buffalo State and will then host Union College in another non-conference showdown on December 2nd.

Fisher will make its way to New York City on December 7th for a tough pairing with New York University before breaking for the holidays.

The Cardinals are set to return from the break on December 30th as they will host Medaille College at 5 p.m. before starting the New Year with another out-of-conference meeting at Middlebury College in Vermont.

Fisher will have one more tune-up before opening its Empire 8 schedule on Monday, January 6th when Ithaca College comes to town.

From there, the Cardinals will embark on their conference schedule as they travel to Alfred University Saxons on January 10th.  From there, the team makes its way to Houghton on January 11th.

The following weekend, the Cardinals will head east to Utica on Friday, January 17th before driving to the Capital Region the next afternoon to duel The Sage Colleges.

On January 24th, Fisher returns home to welcome Elmira College to Pittsford before hosting the defending Empire 8 Champion Hartwick College Hawks on January 25th.

Three days later, Fisher will make the short trek down East Avenue for an Empire 8 test at Nazareth in the first edition of this season's Battle of the Beaks. 

Houghton College comes to town on January 31st before Alfred swings north to open the month of February.

One week later, the Cardinals will wrap up the road portion of their regular season as they venture to Hartwick on February 7th before taking on Elmira the next afternoon in Elmira.
The Cardinals are scheduled to close out their regular season docket with three straight home games beginning with a Valentine's Day showdown with Sage before locking horns with Utica on February 15th.

The season concludes at home on February 22nd with a pivotal game against the Nazareth College Golden Flyers.

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