Field Hockey | 10/6/2021 5:54:00 PM
The St. John Fisher College field hockey team moved into a tie atop the Empire 8 standings on Wednesday after the Cardinals handed visiting Utica College a 3-1 loss in a conference showdown inside Growney Stadium. With the win, Fisher improved to 5-5 overall and remained unbeaten in league play at 3-0. The Pioneers closed out the afternoon at 6-5, 3-1, respectively.
After battling to a scoreless draw in the opening half, the Cardinals forged ahead just 56 seconds into the third quarter when Audrey Grieb inserted the ball on a corner to Bre Socker who dumped it back to Gianna Palma who unloaded a shot into an open goal to stake Fisher to a one-goal lead.
Less than four minutes later, head coach
Victoria Bothner's squad struck again when Socker deflected a high pass from Abby Richardson that broke that goal line to make it a two-score game. The goal marked the 85th in Socker's storied career and broke the Empire 8's all-time mark for career goals that had stood since 2014. Socker, who was named the Empire 8 Player of the Week on Monday, is now the all-time leader for Fisher and the conference in goals and points and is closing in on the Empire 8's all-time record for career assists.
As the third period wore on, Utica would cut the gap in half after scoring in the 36th minute, but was unable to hold Fisher at bay on the other end of the field as Abby Harris sent a pass in that found Socker who buried a shot from the top of the arc to give Fisher the 3-1 advantage.
In all, the Cardinals were credited with 18 shots led by Palma who had six in the win. Socker took five shots including five on goal while Grieb, Emma Cooper and Alyssa Andres each had two shots on the day.
Sophia Trozzi continued her strong play in goal and moved to 5-5 with the decision. The sophomore keeper played all 60 minutes in goal and made seven stops overall.
The Cardinals will hit the road at 1 p.m. on Sunday when they travel to Elmira to take on the Soaring Eagles in another Empire 8 matchup.