PITTSFORD, N.Y. – On the day that it honored its senior class the St. John Fisher College women's basketball team took care of Alfred University, 66-42, on Saturday in an Empire 8 bout within Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium on Bobby Wanzer Court. With the win, Fisher, which has now won its last three games, climbed to 17-7 on the season and 11-4 in the Empire 8 standings while the Saxons fell to 8-16, 4-11, respectively.
Prior to the opening tip, the Cardinals celebrated the career of their lone senior,
Erin Hulbert. Hulbert, who was named the Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Year last season, will go down as one of the most well-rounded players in team history after accounting for nearly 850 points, over 500 rebounds, 300-plus assists and nearly 200 steals in 103 career games.
After holding a slim margin following the first quarter of play, Fisher would pull ahead by five points, 15-10, to begin the second quarter before the Saxons scored four unanswered points to pull to within one point. With momentum wavering, Fisher took charge and scored the game's next 11 points including back-to-back buckets from freshman
Sam Fischer to head into intermission with a double-digit lead, 26-14.
Fisher continued to find its groove in the third quarter after opening up the period with three consecutive 3-pointers as part of a 12-0 run that stretched its lead to 21 points, 38-17. From there, Alfred connected on four straight free throws, but the Cardinals scored 13 of the game's next 15 points fueled by back-to-back layups from
Alex Reigle to hold a 51-27 cushion.
In the fourth quarter, Alfred scored first, but gave way to five quick points to Fisher including a 3-pointer by
Lauren Robbins in the corner to make it a 30-point affair, 58-28. As the game progressed, both teams put together small runs but the gap was too large as Fisher moved to 11-4 in the Empire 8 with one game remaining in the regular season.
Sydney Masna scored 11 points in the win to go along with three steals and two rebounds. Freshman Fischer netted a career-high 11 points off the bench while
Mallory Wood chipped in with seven points and four rebounds in 17 minutes.
Julia Mertsock added seven points and career-high three blocked shots overall while Hulbert was credited with four rebounds and four assists in her final home game.
The Cardinals will have one final contest before the Empire 8 Championship next weekend as the team takes on Houghton College at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday in Houghton.
