KEUKA PARK, N.Y. – The No. 23 St. John Fisher College women's basketball team got back to its winning ways on Friday night as the Cardinals defeated host Keuka College, 61-36, in an Empire 8 pairing inside the JMW Recreation and Athletics Center. With the win, Fisher improved to 15-2 on the season and sits atop the Empire 8 standings with a 7-1 mark while the Wolves fell to 1-14, 0-7, respectively.
Sidney Tomasso, who was named the league's Rookie of the Week for the second consecutive week on Monday, finished with a game-high 14 points on 6-of-12 shooting to go along with five rebounds while
Kaitlyn Walker produced eight points and a team-leading 11 boards in 21 minutes.
Anna Milham provided a spark off the bench with eight points and 10 rebounds while
Claire Kruszka added six points, three assists and a pair of rebounds in the win.
After jumping ahead by five points following the first quarter of play, Fisher's defense locked the Wolves down in the second period and allowed just five points in all while out-scoring the home team, 22-5, to hold a 39-17 edge at the break.
Leading by 22 to begin the second half, the Cardinals' lead would grow to as many as 26 in the third frame before Keuka cut the deficit down to 22 with 10 minutes left to play in the game.
Momentum would swing, however, in the fourth quarter with the Wolves opening the frame on a 7-0 run to pull to within 15, 51-36, with just over six minutes still showing on the clock.
From there, Fisher regained its hold and closed out the game on a 10-0 burst capped off by an old-fashioned three-point play from
Katie Moravec to nail down the team's seventh win in Empire 8 play.
The Cardinals were 25-for-71 (.352) from the field in the win and buried 7-of-9 attempts from the free throw line. Fisher controlled the glass throughout the game and out-rebounded Keuka, 52-32, while also forcing the Wolves in to 19 turnovers in all.
Fisher will look to carry its momentum over to Saturday when the team hosts Nazareth College in the first rendition of this year's Battle of the Beaks. The game will begin at 2 p.m. and is set to played inside Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium on Bobby Wanzer Court.
