PITTSFORD, N.Y. – For the second time in the last three years, the St. John Fisher College women's basketball team will host the Empire 8 Championship as the top-seeded Cardinals are set to take on fourth-seeded Hartwick College at 5:30 p.m. on Friday night in the semifinal round inside Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium on Bobby Wanzer Court. Second-seeded Sage will take on third-seeded Utica College on the other side of the bracket with the winner of each meeting at 4 p.m. on Saturday in the conference title game with an automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship on the line.
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THIRD TIME'S A CHARM?: Or so the saying goes.
Melissa Kuberka was appointed the head coach of the women's basketball team three years ago and has had the team in the conference title game in each of the last two seasons. In 2018, Fisher, which served as the tournament's host, fell to Stevens in the championship bout before being upended by top-seeded Hartwick last year. With perhaps her most talented team yet, Kuberka and the Cardinals are hoping to celebrate the program's fifth Empire 8 Championship on their home floor come Saturday.
HOW WE STACK UP: Entering the weekend, Fisher's name appeared atop of near the top of every statistical category in the conference. To date, the Cardinals lead the conference in field goal percentage (.411), 3-point field goal percentage (.335), 3-point defense (.243), rebounding margin (11.0), rebounding defense (32.5) and scoring margin (11.0). Fisher ranks second overall in the Empire 8 in scoring (69.9), scoring defense (57.9), field goal defense (.355) and rebounding (43.6).
SIX OF ONE, HALF A DOZEN OF ANOTHER: That's a long way of saying that Fisher is hot right now. In fact, the Cardinals will enter the Empire 8 Championship on Friday having won six straight and 12 of its last 14 games. Since falling to Houghton back on January 31st, the Cardinals have outscored their opposition by an average of nearly 18 points per game. Of its last six wins, three came against this year's championship field.
KEEP IT ON THE DOWN LOW: Perhaps this team's biggest strength is in its ability to dominate in the paint this year. Through 25 regular season games, Fisher made its bones down low as the combination of
Ella Eckert,
Julia Mertsock and
Mallory Wood has been a force that few teams have been able to match. Eckert enters the championship nearly averaging a double-double as her 14.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game lead Fisher. With nine double-doubles under belt including two straight, Eckert is capable of taking over a game. If Eckert doesn't get you, Fisher still has two other post players that are capable of inflicting damage including Mertsock who is averaging 10.9 points and 7.3 rebounds while Wood has provided a big spark off the bench with 4.5 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.
THE LYNCH PIN: We touched on Fisher's ability to dump the ball inside, but the Cardinals' impact down low also has a huge affect on the team's perimeter shooting. With Eckert and Mertsock drawing double teams,
Miranda Lynch has taken advantage behind the 3-point arc this season as the sophomore sharpshooter has buried more triples than anyone else in the conference with 69. Lynch, who is averaging a shade over 12 points per game this year, is shooting nearly 42 percent from distance and has made at least one 3-pointer in all but two games this season. Earlier this month against Alfred, the Webster native nearly tied a program record after sinking seven from downtown.
SCOUTING SAGE: The Gators come into the Empire 8 Championship tournament with momentum as they ended the season with 80-65 home win over Utica to lock up the No.2 seed in the process with a 14-11 overall record and a 10-4 record in conference play. Sage is coming into the postseason with the four-ranked offense in Empire 8 as it is averaging 68.4 points per game.
The Gators will rely heavily on their leading scorer as Megan Flynn is averaging over 13 points per game while Kaitlyn Bowman is also capable of stuffing the stat sheet after recently surpassing 1,000 career points. Sage will look to continue to dominant the boards as it enters the weekend as the Empire 8's leader in offensive rebounds (15.6) and defensive rebounds (30.4).
SCOUTING UTICA: Utica College ended the regular season with an overall record of 15-10 and an 8-6 record in conference play to secure the third overall seed in the four-team tournament. The Pioneers lost three of their final four games, despite boasting an offense that leads the Empire 8 in points per game at 72.2.
The Pioneers have a big time one-two punch in Sydney Przygoda and Nicolette Conkin as the duo has been the driving force for Utica all season. Coming into the weekend, Przygoda leads the conference in scoring at 18.7 points per game and is second in rebounding while Conkin ranks third in the conference in scoring (17.4) and leads all players in assists and steals per game.
Look for Utica to spread the floor as the Pioneers are tops in the Empire 8 in 3-point field goals made (7.6) this season.
SCOUTING HARTWICK: The Hawks will matchup with the Cardinals for the third time this season after losing the previous two meeting during the regular season. Hartwick clinched the No.4 seed after winning its regular-season finale against Elmira combined with help from the Cardinals who got a win over Nazareth College. The Hawks, who won the conference title last season, will enter postseason play sporting a 14-11 overall record and an 8-6 mark against conference opposition.
Hartwick College comes into the tournament with three players averaging double figures in scoring led by Maggie Kirby's 13.9 points per game while Giuliana Pritchard (12.5) and Mary Schoenherr (11.4) have put together solid seasons. The Hawks might not be the flashiest team in the tournament's field, however, they're built around defense as head coach Katie Marcella's team leads the conference in scoring defense at just 57.8 points on average.
