Score: St. John Fisher College 86, Elmira College 47
Records: Fisher (8-2, 1-0 E8), Elmira (3-8, 0-2 E8)
Location: Speidel Gymnasium – Elmira, NY

Elmira, NY -- The Elmira College women's basketball team fell to 0-2 inside Empire 8 Conference play after suffering an 86-47 loss to St. John Fisher College at Speidel Gymnasium Friday night.

Although the 39-point margin of defeat was tied for the worst loss the Soaring Eagles have endured in the 2015-16 season, it was merely a three-point game at the end of the first quarter. Emily Green '18 kicked off the contest with a three from the right corner. Following a Meghan Loya '16 second-chance layup, a Jessica Brooks '16 trey at the 7:23 mark gave EC an 8-6 lead.

The Cardinals used a five-point run over the next 1:43 to jump ahead by three, but the Soaring Eagles tied the game at 11-all with a Lindsey Heaton '19 layup and an Ashley Heiman '16 free throw at 3:37.

Another five-point rally from Fisher put the Cardinals up, 16-11, before Rachel Vespucci '19 sunk four consecutive free throws to trim the deficit to one. That would be the closest EC could come throughout the remainder of the game.

Elmira was outscored 68-32 in the final three quarters.

Vespucci, a first-year forward from Macedon, NY, shone brightly despite an otherwise dull performance by the Elmira offense. She scored a team-high 12 points – one shy of her career high - with 10 of those points coming from the charity stripe.

Turning Point
By the looks of the first quarter, Friday night's Empire 8 matchup was primed to be a tough contest. However, the Cardinals turned an 18-15 lead into a 16-point cushion by halftime by outscoring EC 21-8 in the second quarter. Three-pointers helped Fisher gain a big lead, as Mary Kate Cusack scored a pair of treys in the first four minutes of the second quarter, followed by a triple from Claire Walsh at the 5:47 mark, which put the Cardinals up 29-16.

Inside the Box

• Elmira made a season-low 12 field goals, shooting 32.4 percent (12-for-37) from the floor, as compared to Fisher's 39.4 field-goal percentage (28-for-71).
• The Soaring Eagles turned the ball over a season-high 36 times, which led to 42 points off turnovers for the Cardinals.
• Vespucci was the only Soaring Eagle with double-digit points with 12 and a game-high 10 made foul shots.
• Loya was second on the team with eight points to go along with six rebounds.
• All 12 Cardinals who entered the game scored at least two points, led by 17 from Bridget Carney and 13 from Cusack.
• Elmira recorded a season-high six blocks, led by Danielle Cleary '18 and Heiman with two apiece.

News and Notes

• Fisher has won four of the last six meetings against Elmira and now holds a 51-13 advantage in the all-time series.
• The 39-point loss is tied for the largest margin of defeat this season.
• EC's 20 free throws are tied for the second-most made in a game this season.
• Cleary was held to seven points – all scored in the second half – tying her lowest output of the season.
• After averaging 20.8 points per game through the first eight games of the 2015-16 season, Cleary has averaged only 9.3 points over EC's last three contests; the reigning E8 Rookie of the Year still sits third in the league in scoring with 17.6 points per game.
• Heiman's six rebounds, three steals and two blocks are all season highs for the senior forward.

Up Next
The Elmira College women's basketball team is back in action on Saturday, January 9th at Speidel Gymnasium, as the Soaring Eagles cap off a four-game homestand with a 7:00 p.m. game against Empire 8 foe Nazareth College.