ONEONTA, N.Y. – Ella Eckert and Miranda Lynch combined to score 43 points on Saturday as the St. John Fisher College women's basketball team completed the season sweep of Hartwick and moved to within one win of clinching a postseason berth after clipping the Hawks, 73-69, inside Lambros Arena.  With the win, Fisher climbed to 15-6 on the year and 8-2 in the Empire 8 standings while the Hawks fell to 11-10 overall and 5-5 against conference opponents.

Eckert finished with a game-high 24 points on 9-of-18 shooting to go along with eight rebounds and two steals while Lynch added 19 points including four makes from distance.  Julia Mertsock posted her third straight double-double and fifth of the year with 14 points and 10 rebounds while Amy Gardner chipped in with eight points, six rebounds and five assists in the win. 

After holding a double-digit lead in the third quarter, Fisher saw its advantage shaved to one after Hartwick strung together eight unanswered points, but the Cardinals rebounded and pushed their lead back to five after posting back-to-back baskets.

Leading 48-43, the tides would shift with Hartwick outscoring the Cardinals 9-3 over the final two minutes to tie things up at 51-51 with the fourth quarter left to play.

Neither team was able to gain a clear advantage as the final period got underway with the lead changing hands six times before a pair of free throws from Lynch staked the visitors to a 66-64 edge with 1:35 still showing on the clock.  Ahead by one possession, Fisher saw its lead slip away again as the Hawks went 2-for-2 from the free throw line to level things at 66 points aside.

With 1:18 remaining in the game, Gardner drew a foul and converted both free throws, but the Hawks continued to battle and drew even again after working the ball inside and off the glass for two.

Tied at 68-68 with 20 seconds to go, head coach Melissa Kuberka called a timeout to draw a final play.  Coming out of the huddle, Gardner beat her defender and kicked it out to Leah Koonmen who buried the go-ahead 3-pointer to make it 71-68 with just five seconds still showing on the clock.

Trailing by three, Hartwick would draw a quick foul to get to the line with the clock stopped.  The Hawks connected on the first attempt, but came up short on the second as Fisher pounced on the rebound before being fouled.  With just two seconds left before the final horn, Lynch calmly stepped to the charity stripe and sank both offerings as Fisher moved one step closer to securing a postseason bid.

 Overall, Fisher was 26-for-60 (.433) from the field and 15-of-22 from the free throw line.  The Cardinals out-rebounded their opponent, 45-27, and forced Hartwick in to 11 turnovers.

The Cardinals will look to clinch a postseason berth at 4 p.m. on Sunday when they take on Elmira College in another Empire 8 road tilt.