Women's Basketball | 2/21/2022 9:00:10 AM
Top-seed St. John Fisher College will look to win its second title in three seasons, as the 2021-22 Empire 8 Women’s Basketball Championship begins on Tuesday, Feb. 22 with first round action before semifinal and championship action takes place on Friday, Feb. 25 and Saturday, Feb. 26 at St. John Fisher.
No. 4 seed Utica College will host No. 5 Russell Sage College in the opening round Tuesday evening at 7 p.m. The winner of that match will take on St. John Fisher from Manning-Napier Varsity Gym in the first semifinal at 5:30 p.m. Friday. No. 2 seed Hartwick College and No. 3 seed Nazareth College will battle in the second semifinal at 7:30 p.m. The two semifinal winners will meet for the 2022 Empire 8 Championship on Saturday at 3 p.m.
The league champion receives an automatic berth into the 2022 NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Championship, which begins March 4-5.
Final 2021-22 Empire 8 Women’s Basketball Championship Seeds
#1 – St. John Fisher (15-1 E8, 23-2 Overall)
#2 – Hartwick (13-3, E8, 18-6 Overall)
#3 – Nazareth (11-5 E8, 16-9 Overall)
#4 – Utica (10-6 E8, 19-6 Overall)
#5 – Russell Sage (8-8, 12-13 Overall)
The 2021-22 Empire 8 Women’s Basketball Championship schedule is below. For the most up to date information on this year's championship, follow the Empire 8 Conference on Twitter (@Empire8).
2021-22 Empire 8 Women's Basketball Championship Schedule
Tuesday, February 22 – First Round (at Higher Seed)
#5 Russell Sage vs. #4 Utica College – 5:30 p.m.
Friday, February 25 – Semifinals (at St. John Fisher)
Winner of Russell Sage/Utica at No. 1 St. John Fisher – 5:30 p.m.
No. 3 Nazareth vs. No. 2 Hartwick - 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, February 26 - Championship Final (at St. John Fisher)
Winner of Semifinal #1 vs. Winner of Semifinal #2 - 3 p.m.
St. John Fisher is ranked No. 21 in Division III and enters the tournament with a 23-2 overall record and finished 15-1 in E8 play. The Cardinals are outscoring opponents by an average of 71.5-51.7 this season and are out-rebounding opponents by 14 per game. Six different Cardinals are averaging at least 21 minutes of play per game and four players are averaging at 10 points per contest. Claire Kruszka leads the Cardinals in scoring, averaging 12.5 points and assists, with 3.8 per game. She is also averaging 4.5 rebounds and 2.0 steals per contest. Kaitlyn Walker is averaging 11.5 points, 8.6 boards and 1.6 blocks per game. Miranda Lynch, the 2020 Empire 8 Championship Most Valuable Player, is averaging 10.9 points per game, while first-year standout Sydney Tomasso is averaging 10.1 points. The Cardinals are looking to win their sixth E8 title in program history.
Hartwick enters the tournament with an 18-6 overall record, having finished 13-3 in league play under first-year head coach Sarah Lombard. The Hawks are riding a six-game winning streak entering postseason play and are outs-scoring its opponents by an average of nearly 13 points per game and holds a 45.4-39.2 edge in rebounds per game. Maggie Kirby leads the team and is third in the league in scoring, averaging 13.6 points per game. She is also averaging 6.1 boards per game. Giuliana Pritchard is right behind Kirby, averaging 13.0 points and a team-best 6.6 rebounds per contest and is among the league leaders, with 1.3 blocks per contest. First-year Mikyla Mitchell in addition to Molly Kirby, Bree Fargnoli, Daniella DeBiase and Isabella Astorino have all played a major role in Hartwick’s success. Hartwick is looking to win its second league title in the last four seasons.
The Golden Flyers finished 11-5 in league play and enters the tourney with a 16-9 overall record. Nazareth, the defending Empire 8 Champion, is outscoring its opponents, 66.2-56.1 this season. Senior Jadyn Abrams, the reigning Empire 8 Player of the Year, leads all E8 players in scoring, averaging 16.2 points per game. She is also shooting a league-best 37 percent from 3-point range and has drained 62 long range shots. Classmate Kim Davis is averaging 10.0 points and team-high totals of 9.9 boards and 1.5 blocks per game. Graduate student Sabrina Wolfe is second in the league with 4.1 assists per contest, while chipping in with 10.4 points per contest. Miyah Sizer has enjoyed a breakout year, averaging 9.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists per contest, while Caley Cornwell is averaging 7.5 points. The Golden Flyers are looking for their second straight Empire 8 title.
Hartwick swept the regular season series against Nazareth, winning 66-62 on its home court Jan. 7, while securing an 86-72 win on the road, Feb. 6.
Utica enters the tournament with a 19-6 record, having finished 10-6 in E8 play. Utica flew out of the gates by winning its first 12 games of the 2021-22 season. Sydney Przygoda is second in the league in scoring, averaging 15.4 points and leads the league in rebounding with 10.5 caroms per contest. Brigid Johndrow has stuffed the stat sheet all season, averaging 9.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and a league-best 5.0 assists per game, while recording 2.6 steals per contest. Cora Sawyer, Petrina DeMarco and Krissy Geraci have all played a major role in Utica’s success during the season. The Pioneers are looking for their third E8 title and first since 2009-10.
Russell Sage finished the regular season with a 12-13 mark and went 8-8 in conference play. The Gators clinched the final postseason spot on the final day of the regular season. is looking for its first league title. First-year Syrita Faraj leads the team in scoring, averaging 13.5 points and is pulling down 7.6 rebounds per game. Sammy Pasinella is averaging 12.2 points and a team-best 3.1 assists per game, while draining 54 made 3-pointers. Kara Oeffler is, averaging 9.7 points and 7.6 rebounds per game, while Meghan Murray is averaging 9.3 points and a team-best 7.7 boards per game. The Gators advanced to the title game in 2019-20.
Utica won both regular season meetings versus Russell Sage, 80-71 on Jan. 18 and 55-54 on home court 11 days later. The winner would advance to play St. John Fisher on Friday. The top-seed Cardinals won both matchups versus both Utica and Russell Sage earlier this season.
Admission
$6.00 - Adults
$4.00 - Students and seniors with ID
Free - Children under 12
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
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