Score: St. John Fisher College 59 – Elmira College 53
Records: Fisher (9-10, 6-4 E8), Elmira (6-12, 2-7 E8)
Location: Speidel Gymnasium – Elmira, N.Y.
 
ELMIRA, N.Y. -- For the second consecutive game, the Elmira College women's basketball team sees its fourth-quarter comeback attempt fall just short, as the Soaring Eagles fell to St. John Fisher College, 59-53, on Tuesday evening.

The Soaring Eagles had a difficulty finding their shot to start the contest, so the Cardinals took advantage and ran out to an early 8-2 lead with 5:52 left in the opening quarter. EC's play started to heat up after these early struggles, as they went on a 14-7 run to end the quarter to take a 16-15 lead. The run was highlighted by a Bridget Yaw '20 lay-in as the first quarter ended.   

Both programs traded baskets for most of the second, as the margin never grew larger than six points. Things started to go Fisher's way at the end of the quarter, when Caroline Robertson was rewarded with two foul shots following an Emily Green '18 foul as the halftime buzzer sounded. Robertson sank both attempts and gave the Cardinals a 28-25 advantage going into the break.

The game started to get away from Elmira at the start of the second half. The Cardinals went on a 10-2 run that lasted until the 5:09 mark of the third, which expand their lead to 13 points, 40-27. The Soaring Eagles answered at the end of the quarter, as a Green trey cut the margin to 44-37, going into the fourth.

After a back-and-forth battle to start the final quarter, the Cardinals went on a rush in the fourth to claim a game-high 14-point lead, 59-45, with a Chelsea Repard 3-pointer with 3:04 left in the contest.

Although EC faced a double-digit margin, the team went on a late run to draw the game closer. Following that Repard trey, the Soaring Eagles went on an 8-0 run to cut the deficit to 59-53. A Danielle Cleary '18 layup ended the run with just 10 seconds remaining in the game.

Unfortunately for Elmira, the run came too late in the contest, as the Soaring Eagles still faced a six-point disadvantage and only 10 seconds to overcome it. The Cardinals clung to their slim lead and ran down the final seconds on the clock to take the 59-53 victory.

Turning Point
The differentiating factor in tonight's contest was the difference in the team's second-half field goal percentages. Elmira struggled to find its shot in the second stanza, as it owned a 26.8 field goal percentage (11-for-41). Fisher's 43.3 field goal percentage allowed it to surge ahead in the half. This discrepancy in shooting efficiency gave the Cardinals the opportunity to pull far enough ahead, that the Soaring Eagles were unable to catch up.  
 
Inside the Box Score

• EC had a difficulty finding its shot the entire night, as they went 20-for-67 (29.9%) from the floor.
• Fisher shot the ball better, as it went 22-for-59 (37.3%) from the field.
• Both teams struggled shooting from distance, as the Soaring Eagles went 6-for-21 (28.6%) from deep and the Cardinals shot 3-for-12 (25.0%).
• Fisher outrebounded Elmira by just one board, 44-43.
• The Cardinals also bested the Soaring Eagles in steals, 7-4.
• Both teams finished the contest tied in turnovers with 21 apiece.
• Cleary paced EC with a game-high-tying 20 points and finished one rebound shy of a double-double with nine.
• Lindsey Heaton '19 rounded out Elmira's double-digit scorers with 10 points.
• Rachel Vespucci '19 excelled on the boards, as she posted a game-high 15 rebounds.
• Yaw almost posted the first double-double of her career with eight points and 10 boards.
• Caroline Robertson led the way for Fisher with a game-high-tying 20 points to go along with nine rebounds.  

News and Notes

• Elmira's record falls to 6-12 overall and 2-7 in conference.
• Tonight's game was the first time in their last seven contests that the Soaring Eagles were outrebounded.  
• The Soaring Eagles' four steals are tied for their second-lowest total of the season.
• Yaw recorded new career highs in both points (8) and rebounds (10).
• Vespucci's 15 boards are tied for the third most that she has posted this season.
• Vespucci also tied a season high with three steals.
• With 10 points, Heaton extended her double-digit scoring streak to 10 consecutive games.
• Cleary posted her fifth 20-point scoring output tonight with her 20 points.

Up Next
EC plays on Friday and Saturday, February 3rd and 4th, as part of Elmira College's 35th Annual Athletics Alumni Weekend. The Soaring Eagles have a 6:00 p.m. showdown against Stevens Institute of Technology on Friday and a 2:00 p.m. bout against Houghton College on Saturday.