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ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Sophomore
Brittany Wilson scored a game-high 20 points to lead the visiting Golden Flyers Tuesday, but St. John Fisher's stingy defense held Nazareth to a field goal percentage of 20 percent in a 61-46 Cardinals' victory in a women's Empire 8 basketball game.
With the loss, Nazareth dropped to 9-9 overall and 3-6 in conference games. The Cardinals improved to 10-8 overall and 5-5 in the Empire 8. The two teams are battling or the fourth playoff spot in the Empire 8 tournament. Tonight's loss drops the Golden Flyers further behind the Cardinals for the final spot.
After taking a 2-0 lead on a basket by sophomore
Ashley Gallagher, the Golden Flyers put themselves in a deep hole with poor shooting. Nazareth shot just 16 percent (4-25) from the field in the first half. Fisher took advantage of the Golden Flyers' struggles with a 25-13 scoring run, spanning more than eight minutes. Senior
Kylie Bartlett connected on a three-point basket in the final minute to cut Nazareth's deficit to 25-16 at halftime.
The Cardinals continued to build their lead in the second half as they scored the first seven points in the first 1:04 of the period to take a 16-point lead. The Golden Flyers continued to struggle to hit their field goals as they started 1 for 14 from the field in the second half. With Nazareth having a difficult time finding the bottom of the basket, the Cardinals' lead swelled to 22 points twice in the second half. Wilson connected on two three-pointers in the final minute to cut the final score deficit to 15 points.
The Golden Flyers shot very well from the free throw line as they connected on 83 percent (24-29) of their attempts. The Cardinals also had frequent free throw opportunities and shot 75 percent (27-36) from the line. In a hard-fought game, the officials called 24 personal fouls on each team.
Both teams also forced each other into making uncharacteristic turnovers. Nazareth had 22 turnovers and forced Fisher into making 26 turnovers. The Golden Flyers' defense also forced Fisher into poor shots as it held the Cardinals' offense to just 31 percent from the field.
Wilson was the only Golden Flyer to finish in double figures, and she also added seven rebounds. Senior
Kelly Dunne finished with eight points while Bartlett added six points. Gallagher tallied a team-high eight rebounds.
For the Cardinals, Colleen Maloney scored a team-high 12 points, followed by Molly Dougherty with seven points. Kayleigh Comfort, Amanda Lax, Kristi Jeffres, and Mary Kate Comfort each added six points in Fisher's balanced scoring attack.
Nazareth returns to the Kidera Gymnasium for an Empire 8 conference game against Alfred Friday evening. The Golden Flyers also host Stevens Saturday afternoon.