PITTSFORD, N.Y. – Sophomore Ella Eckert nailed down her fifth double-double of the season as the St. John Fisher College women's basketball team netted its sixth straight win after holding on to defeat visiting Hartwick College, 62-54, on Saturday in an Empire 8 battle inside Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium on Bobby Wanzer Court.  With the win, Fisher improved to 13-4 overall and remained atop the Empire 8 standings with a perfect 6-0 mark.  The Hawks slipped to 10-8 on the year and 4-3 against conference competition.

Neither team had a clear advantage following the first half of play as the Cardinals clung to a three-point edge at the break, 34-31.  The game remained tight as the third quarter got underway with Fisher building a six-point cushion following a 3-pointer at the top of the key from Amy Gardner.

Ahead on the scoreboard, 40-34, Hartwick would pull to within two points following a 6-2 run.  After Leah Koonmen staked the home to a four-point edge with a bucket in the paint, the Hawks trimmed the deficit to one with an old-fashioned three-point play that made it 44-43 with under two minutes to play in the quarter.  From there, Gardner found Mallory Wood on the block for two points as Fisher took a 46-43 lead into the final period.

With 10 minutes left in the game, Fisher would push its lead to five points in the opening minutes of the fourth, but Hartwick continued to stick around and pulled to within one, 48-47, with a pair of free throws.  As the frame ticked down, both teams swapped baskets until two freebies from Alex Reigle sparked a 6-2 burst from Fisher that staked the home team to a seven-point margin, 59-52, with 24 seconds left to go.

With time working against it, Hartwick resorted to fouling, however, the Cardinals met the challenge and buried 3-of-4 at the charity stripe down the stretch to remain unbeaten in conference play.

Eckert led the Cardinals with 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting.  The forward pulled down 10 rebounds and finished with three assists in the win.  Gardner added 11 points and five rebounds overall while Miranda Lynch chipped in with nine points and four rebounds of her own.  Harper Mead netted eight points and handed out two assists while Koonmen was credited with eight points, five boards and a steal.

Up next, the Cardinals make the short trek down East Avenue to take on the Nazareth College Golden Flyers in the first meeting of the Battle of the Beaks inside Kidera Gymnasium.