St. John Fisher Opens Empire 8 Play with Big Win over Elmira
The St. John Fisher College women’s lacrosse team opened Empire 8 Conference play with a commanding 16-6 victory over the Elmira College Soaring Eagles on Saturday afternoon. With the win, Fisher has now won four-straight games and improves its record to 6-3 and 1-0 in the Empire 8. The loss was Elmira’s second of the season, as the team now falls to 6-1, 0-1.
The Cardinals opened the game by jumping out to a 3-0 lead as Melissa Leonhard, Bridget Alberts and Taylor Hughes all scored for the visitors.
Elmira answered with two-goals, but they would end up being the only goals the host would score in the first half, as Fisher held a 7-2 lead after the first 30 minutes.
In that first half, Leonhard recorded all three of her goals of the day, with her third marker registering as the 100
th of her career. The junior transferred to Fisher last season and has accomplished the feat in just 27 games in cardinal and gold.
Freshman Erin Ward also had a strong first stanza as she assisted on two of the Cardinals first-three goals and also added a tally of her own.
In the second half, the Cardinals continued their strong play as they added five-straight goals. The run was an extension of the Cardinals four-goal streak that ended the first half, with the nine-goal marathon spanning from the 10:35 mark of the first half to the 20:34 mark of the second.
Ward picked up two more goals in the second-half run, as she finished the contest with a game-high seven points on four goals and three assists.
The spurt would be enough to sustain the lead, as Elmira was never able to threaten the Cardinals past the 3-2 score.
Hughes finished with four goals in the contest, while Alberts added two. Shannon McDermott also recorded two points on the day with a goal and an assist. Emily Bryerton and Kristen Zylka also added goals for the Cardinals.
Leonhard and Lindsey Shoales controlled the draw circle, winning a combined 15 draws between the two players. The stat was a difference maker, as Fisher controlled the category with an 18-5 advantage. Brie Frey led the Cardinals with four ground balls.