Women's Lacrosse | 3/22/2023 7:19:00 PM
CORTLAND, NY - The St. John Fisher University women's lacrosse team used a tremendous defensive effort to defeat No. 15 SUNY Cortland by a score of 5-3 on Wednesday afternoon. The Cardinals now stand at 5-1 on the season, while the Red Dragons fall to 3-3.
Sydney Carpenter took the first shot on the game for Fisher but the Red Dragon goalie held strong in cage. The Cardinals recorded the first goal of the contest for either team ten minutes into the first quarter. Mary Fiorentino finished off an assist from Cara Landry, her seventh goal of the season. The Fisher defense held strong in the first quarter to keep Cortland scoreless.
The Red Dragons recorded the first goal of the second to tie it up a one a piece, but Fisher answered right back. Mykenzie Black converted off a pass from Fiorentino to give the Cardinals the lead, 2-1 with 10:18 to go until halftime. The rest of the second was a back and forth defensive battle between the two teams. With just one second left in the second quarter, Landry netted her first of the game to bring Fisher up 3-1 heading into halftime.
Cortland came out of halftime knowing they had a deficit to come back from. They recorded two goals throughout the third quarter, and kept Fisher scoreless. The Cardinals created one scoring opportunity but could not capitalize.
Heading into the fourth, the game was tied 3-3. At the 7:54 minute mark, Kaley Griffin recored a ground ball, transitioning it safely to the offensive end. The Cardinals moved the ball with a purpose and drew a free position shot for Carpenter. Carpenter converted on this free position attempt and gave the Cardinals a 4-3 lead with 6:45 to go in the game. Lilly Goodsell recorded a solid save on the defensive end to get Fisher the ball back with 3:51 to go. Landry took it hard to cage and found the back of the net for her second of the day to bring Fisher up by two. As the last few minutes counted down, Goodsell made another crucial save to secure the Cardinal victory. Fisher came out on top at the end of regulation by a final score of 5-3. Goodsell, the two-time reigning E8 Goalie of the Week, had nine saves on the day for a .750 save percentage.
Up next for the Cardinals is another tough test, as they will host No. 5 William Smith at Growney Stadium on Wednesday March 29 at 4 p.m.
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