PITTSFORD, N.Y. – The No. 5-seeded St. John Fisher University field hockey team beat No. 4-seeded Nazareth 3-0 in the opening round of the Empire 8 Field Hockey Championship on Monday night at NLPA Field.
The Cardinals (9-10) will face No. 1-seeded SUNY Geneseo in the conference semifinals at 4 p.m. on Thursday. Geneseo beat St. John Fisher 1-0 in double overtime back on Oct. 19 at Growney Stadium.
The Cardinals, who lost 2-0 to Nazareth two weeks ago, took control of Wednesday's game in the second half with three goals, two of which came in the third quarter.
Freshman midfielder Sydney Byrns scored her first collegiate goal to open the scoring on an assist from senior forward Audrey Grieb at the 34:07 mark. About two minutes later, senior forward Emma Cooper made it 2-0 when she netted her eighth goal of the season. Senior forward Molly Fisher and freshman midfielder Avery McLaughlin recorded assists on that play.
Fisher, who leads the Cardinals and is tied for fourth in the Empire 8 with 13 goals, got in on the scoring early in the fourth quarter on a feed from Grieb, who recorded her third multi-assist game of the season. She leads the team with eight assists.
Senior goalkeeper Senja Matson made three saves and recorded her second consecutive shutout. She has four clean sheets this season, the third most in the Empire 8.
The Cardinals will be making their third appearance in the Empire 8 semifinals under head coach Lauren Scorza, who's in her third season in charge of the program. The winner of Thursday's contest would face No. 3-seeded Hartwick or No. 2-seeded SUNY Brockport in the title game on Sunday, Nov. 10.
2024 Empire 8 Field Hockey Championship Scores
Monday, November 4 – First Round
No. 3 Hartwick defeated No. 6 Houghton, 4-1 – BOX SCORE
No. 5 St. John Fisher defeated No. 4 Nazareth, 3-0 – BOX SCORE
Thursday, November 7 - Semifinals
No. 5 St. John Fisher at No. 1 SUNY Geneseo – 4 p.m. – VIDEO/LIVE STATS
No. 3 Hartwick at No. 2 SUNY Brockport – 4 p.m. – VIDEO/LIVE STATS
Sunday, November 10 - Championship Final
Winner of Semifinal 1 vs. Winner of Semifinal 2 -– TBA (at highest remaining seed)
