PITTSFORD, N.Y. – For the fourth consecutive season, the St. John Fisher College women's basketball team will play for a conference title as the second-seeded Cardinals defeated third-seeded Alfred University on Tuesday night, 76-62, in the semifinal round of the Empire 8 Championship inside Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium on Bobby Wanzer Court.
 
With the win, Fisher improved to 9-2 on the year and will advance to the finale where it will meet top-seeded Nazareth College at 7 p.m. on Thursday in Kidera Gymnasium.  Alfred's season came to a close with the loss as the Saxons closed out their year at 2-7 overall.

Miranda Lynch led all scorers with 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting including five from downtown while Kaitlyn Walker posted her third double-double of the year with 10 points and 12 rebounds.  Sam Fischer provided a spark off the bench with 14 points and six rebounds in 14 minutes.  Amy Gardner and Anna Milham had seven points apiece while Hannah Morse chipped in with six points, five assists and four boards.

After jumping out to an eight-point lead following the first 10 minutes of play, Fisher pushed its lead to double figures as Morse forced the defense to collapse before kicking it out to Lauren Robbins who drained a jumper to make it 22-12 with two minutes having ticked by in the second quarter.

The lead would grow to 12 points nearing the midpoint of the frame as Walker cleaned up on the offensive glass and converted a lay-up, but the Saxons would seize the momentum and used an 8-2 burst fueled by four free throws to cut the deficit to six with 1:24 remaining in the first half.  With its hold beginning to slip away, Fisher buckled down and held the Saxons to just one field goal attempt over the final 84 seconds while Ally Shoemaker scored on the other end to make it 36-28 at the break.

As the third quarter got underway, Fisher began to push the tempo as the Cardinals extended their advantage to 17 following a 12-2 run featuring six points from Lynch.

The margin would grow to as many as 21 points early on in the fourth period, but the tides shifted as Alfred orchestrated a 12-2 run of its own to cut the gap down to nine points with under five minutes remaining in the game. 

Facing an uphill climb with time running out, Alfred continued to apply the pressure and pulled to within eight points, but the Saxons were unable to hold Fisher at bay on the other end as the Cardinals closed out the game with eight of the final 10 points to earn a spot in Thursday's finale.

As a team, Fisher handed out 21 assists on the night and went 29-for-66 (.439) from the floor.  The Cardinals buried seven from behind the arc and held a big advantage on the glass after out-rebounding Alfred, 49-38.