Second-Half Effort Leads St. John Fisher Over Stevens
The St. John Fisher College women’s basketball team used a strong second half to
defeat the Stevens Institute of Technology 60-56 in an Empire 8 Conference match-up.
The win marks the first time the Cardinals have ever won in Hoboken, N.J., and brings Fisher to .500 in the Empire 8 Conference with a 3-3 record, improving the team to 7-10 on the season.
With the loss, Stevens falls to 4-2, 7-9 overall.
Though they never led in the first half, the Cardinals had multiple leads in the second, as the visiting team was able to rally for the victory.
Coming into the second half tied at 28-28, Fisher took the first possession of the half and gained its first lead of the game on a basket by Sydney Bloomstein.
Later in the half, Bloomstein scored again, this time on a fast break with the assist going to Portia Velasco.
Velasco sent a long ball to the streaking forward who was able to nail the bucket despite pressure from a Steven’s defender.
The Cardinals built their biggest lead of the half at eight points at the 6:25 mark when Brooke Seavitt nailed a three-pointer.
The Ducks attempted the comeback, but were only able to get within two points, dropping the game on their home court.
Bloomstein and Camaryn Buckner sealed the contest for Fisher, making a combined six free throws in the final 32 seconds, for the team’s third Empire 8 Conference win of the season.
Velasco helped the Cardinals rally back in the first half, as her layup with five seconds left tied the game at 28s heading into the locker room.
Velasco scored a total of seven points in the half, but the Cardinals were led by senior Meghan Soja who scored 12 in the first 20 minutes.
Soja also provided seven rebounds and three steals in the half.
Soja recorded her fourth double-double of the season (and third in the past four games), finishing with 16 points and 13 rebounds. Velasco added 15 points and a game-high six assists, while both Bloomstein and Buckner chipped in 12 points.