Women's Basketball | 3/1/2024 7:56:00 PM
PROVIDENCE, RI – The St. John Fisher University women's basketball team will play in the second round of the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship for the third straight year, thanks to a 55-46 win over Gettysburg on Friday at the campus of Rhode Island College. The Cardinals improve to 24-4 in 2023-24, while Gettysburg has its season come to an end with a 24-4 mark.
The Cardinals never trailed throughout the game but with the game tied at 35-35 entering the fourth quarter went on a 9-1 spurt over the next five minutes to take control.
The Cardinals scored first, with senior guard Claire Kruszka hitting a three-pointer with 7:44 left in the first quarter to put Fisher up 3-0. They'd maintain that lead throughout a defense-heavy first quarter until Gettysburg tied it up 6-6 with 1:53 left in the quarter. Kruszka struck again in the final minute, hitting a three with 51 seconds left to put the team ahead, 9-6, heading into the second quarter.
Fisher held the lead through the rest of the first half, outscoring the Bullets 14-11 in the second quarter. Kruszka remained a major part of the Cardinals' attack, scoring six points including another three-pointer. It was junior guard and Empire 8 MVP Sidney Tomasso, however, who ensured the Cardinals went to the locker room up six, hitting a three-pointer with 36 seconds left to make the score 23-17.
For much of the third quarter, Fisher stayed ahead and at once point extended the lead to 11 points, their most of the night. Gettysburg wouldn't go away, however, and they slowly clawed their way back through the quarter until tying it up on a three-pointer by Reagan Chrencik as time expired.
With their season potentially down to ten minutes and the score at 35-35, the Cardinals delivered, taking the lead with 9:13 left in the game on a layup by freshman forward Joleen Lusk, 37-35. The Cardinals would lead from that point on, but a late Gettysburg run cut the lead to 48-44 with just over a minute left.
That's when the Fisher free-throw shooting and defense came up clutch, as the Cards went 7-of-10 from the charity stripe in the final minute while the Bullets could only score a single jumper. Leading the way from the line was junior Katie Moravec, who went 8-for-11 on the night including 4-for-6 in the final minute.
Kruszka led both teams with 16 points (including three three-pointers), followed by Tomasso and Moravec with 12 each. Lusk had 12 rebounds with four blocks defensively. Moravec and Kruszka each had four steals, a category that the Cardinals dominated throughout the night, ultimately outdoing Gettysburg 15-5.
The Cardinals will have a quick turnaround, facing to the winner of Friday's late game in Providence between St. Joseph's (Maine) and host Rhode Island College. At stake: a trip to the Sweet 16. Tipoff is 7:30 P.M.
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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