ALFRED, NY – The Alfred University women's basketball team resumed Empire 8 competition with a 72-56 loss to St. John Fisher University on Friday night from the Terry S. Galanis Family Arena.
The Saxons (4-7, 0-3 Empire 8) held the Cardinals (10-2, 3-0 Empire 8) to 34.2 percent from the field as part of their efforts.
Natalee Collins (Waterville, NY/Waterville) led Alfred University with a team-high 11 points to go with eight rebounds and two blocks.
Jaidyn Chest (Mayfield, NY/Mayfield) recorded 10 points and four boards off the bench.
Grace Rittenhouse (Dansville, NY/Dansville) finished the game with eight points, seven rebounds, five assists, and two steals for AU.
Leah Harkenrider (Hornell, NY/Hornell) recorded three steals for the Saxons, becoming just the ninth player in program history to eclipse 100 career steals with the women's basketball program.
"I thought we played 32 or so solid minutes today, but unfortunately of the eight not so good, half of those were really poor," Head Coach
Mike Moskowitz said. "Turnovers led to easy scores for them and second chance points. Fisher is such a well-coached team who is efficient across the board. I thought we executed the game plan well and competed at a high rate, especially in the second half. I'm excited to go to battle tomorrow with our 14 against a similarly talented and well-coached Nazareth squad."
Collins opened scoring for the Saxons in the first quarter. The Cardinals continued to answer with successful shots before leading 19-12 going into the second quarter.
Kate Quinn (West Seneca, NY/West Seneca West) was responsible for three of AU's opening five points in the second quarter. A scoring drought for the Saxons led to the team trailing by as many as 17 points before halftime.
Jayda L. Felker (Corning, NY/Corning-Painted Post) was responsible for AU's first two baskets in the third quarter. The Saxons relied on a 7-0 run in the third quarter to cut their deficit but were still behind 54-39 with one quarter to play. Six different players scored for Alfred University in the fourth quarter, but St. John Fisher responded with shots of their own to secure the win.
Alfred University will next host Nazareth University on Saturday with tip-off scheduled for 2:00 PM.
