PITTSFORD, N.Y. (April 20, 2019)  – Freshmen Gale Bennett and Morgan Westerby each scored a pair of goals, but No. 13 St. John Fisher College defeated the Stevens Institute of Technology women's lacrosse team 21-7 in an Empire 8 Conference matchup at Growney Stadium.

Junior Kyra Bednarski finished with a goal and two assists for the Ducks, who dropped their second straight game to fall to 6-9. The setback dropped Stevens to 4-2 in the Empire 8. The Ducks are a half-game behind both Utica and Nazareth and a half-game ahead of Hartwick. Stevens will host the Hawks in the final game of the regular season.

"Today was a tough one," said head coach Karen Shaddock. "We had a difficult week playing two ranked opponents and I am proud of how hard we played."

"There were several moments where we really showed our potential, but we needed to do that more consistently," the first-year head coach continued. "I am really proud of the progress my team and players have made this season and that they continue to stay focused on our goals. We will get there."

Mary Grace Doyle had five goals an assist and Allison Rupp added two goals and four assists for the Cardinals, who won their 12th straight game to improve to 13-1 on the year and a perfect 6-0 in league play. St. John Fisher moved to 12-7 all-time against Stevens and has won each of the last two meetings.

Junior Emily Shanklin added a goal and an assist and freshman Natalie Fitzpatrick also found the back of the net for the Ducks, who played their fourth game against a nationally-ranked opponent this season. Bennett also collected an assist to round out Stevens' scoring.

Sophomore Peyton Taylor made her fifth straight start and made seven saves. Classmate Olivia Demetres relieved Taylor in the second half and made one save. Claudia Mocciaro drew the start but was pulled after allowing four goals without a save. Morgan Hayes played the final 41 minutes and allowed three goals on five shots to earn the victory.

Although Stevens won the opening draw control, Fisher took the game's first shot, when Mallory Eymer's free-position attempt rang off the post. The Cardinals picked up the ground ball and Eymer earned her second free-position shot of the game and beat Taylor to open scoring.

Stevens claimed the next draw control and Shanklin deftly weaved through the Fisher defense and ran a give-and-go with Bennett to collect her 30th of the season. The Berkley, Michigan native netted a career-high 37 goals one season ago. The Cardinals quickly responded on a transition play off the next draw control, with Doyle finding the back of the net to again put St. John Fisher in front. The teams combined for three goals in less than 90 seconds.

Stevens' defensive unit stood tall in keeping the margin at one, before the Cardinals erupted for four straight goals to take a 6-1 lead before the Ducks responded with consecutive goals to cut the lead in half. 

Westerby's consecutive goals on back-to-back possessions forced a Fisher goalie change and the teams alternated the next three goals as Fisher took a four-point lead. Bennett scored her second of the game to draw Stevens closer, but the Cardinals scored nine of the next 10 goals bridging the intermission to take a commanding 16- 5 lead. 

Bednarski extended her scoring streak midway through the second half to slow down Fisher's offense, but the Cardinals scored six of the final seven goals to provide the game's final margin. 

St. John Fisher outshot Stevens 36-12 and tripled the Ducks' output in shots on net, 29-9. Emma Thompson recorded a game-high eight shots to pace the Cardinals, while Bednarski and Shanklin each fired off three attempts to lead the Ducks.

Stevens committed 26 turnovers, including 17 in the first half. Fisher's Hayley Maguire forced three turnovers to lead all players, while freshman Meredith Conlin caused two to lead the Ducks. Stevens' turnovers were noteworthy on the clear, with the Ducks converting just 11 of their 21 clearing attempts, while the Cardinals were successful on 13 of their 15 attempts. The edge in turnovers helped St. John Fisher to a 20-14 advantage in ground balls.

Westerby and Shanklin each earned four draw controls to lead Stevens, although St. John Fisher held an 18-11 advantage on the day. Sydney DeGirolamo collected a game-high seven to lead the Cardinals. Despite the final numbers, Stevens outearned the home team 9-8 in the first half.

St. John Fisher successfully converted three of their eight free-position attempts, while Stevens converted two of its four attempts.

A pair of Stevens penalties led to two St. John Fisher power-play goals.

Up Next: Women's Lacrosse opens a two-game homestand against Sage and Hartwick on April 23. The Ducks defeated the Gators 22-2 one season ago in the first-ever meeting between the teams. 

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