Houghton College women's basketball will make its first appearance in the Empire 8 Conference Tournament when the #4 Highlanders square off against the top-seeded St. John Fisher Cardinals on Friday, Feb. 23 at 8 p.m. in Pittsford, N.Y.
 
The Highlanders have had a breakout season, turning in their most overall wins since going 13-12 in 2011-12. The team's 9-7 conference record is the best mark since Houghton began appearing in the E8 standings in 2014-15, besting last year's mark of 5-11.
 
The semifinal matchup with the Cardinals will serve as the season's rubber match between the squads. Houghton handed the Cardinals their only conference loss on January 12 (58-55), on Bobby Wanzer Court in Pittsford. Fisher, however, returned the favor less than two weeks later in Houghton, defeating the Highlanders, 68-58.

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

Friday, February 23
Semifinal 1 - #2 Sage vs. #3 Stevens – 6:00 p.m. - Live Stats | Video

Semifinal 2 - #1 St. John Fisher vs. #4 Houghton – 8:00 p.m. - Live Stats | Video
 
Saturday, February 24
Championship – 4:00 p.m. - Live Stats | Video

Visit the tournament website
 
SEMIFINAL #1:
 
About (#1) St. John Fisher: SJF Roster |  SJF Schedule |  SJF Stats

• Overall Record: 20-5
• Conference Record: 15-1
• Last E8 Tournament Appearance: 2016-17
• Overall E8 Tournament Record: 6-11
• Last Time as #1 Seed: 2005-06
• Last Conference Championship: 2014-15

Projected Starters            Pos.     RPG     APG     PPG
#2   Alex Reigle                   G         2.3       1.1       4.3
#5   Erin Hulbert                  G         7.8       3.7      11.5
#25 Sydney Masna              F          4.3       1.3       7.0
#30 Caroline Robertson      F          5.8       2.3      13.8
#31 Nicole Robinson           F          6.1       2.0       9.7  

About (#4) Houghton: Roster | Schedule | Stats

• Overall Record: 13-12
• Conference Record: 9-7
• Last E8 Tournament Appearance: First Appearance
• Last Conference Championship: None

 
Projected Starters            Pos.     RPG     APG     PPG
#3   Laurie Call                    G         4.5       2.6       4.9
#4   Cori Beck                     G         3.7       4.4       6.4
#12 Brittany Lenart              G         4.3       1.8      11.1
#11 Emily Swanson             F          6.0       1.1      10.0
#23 Leslie Moose                F          6.4       0.7       7.2
 
 
Coach's Corner: Q & A with Houghton Head Coach Alicia Mucher:
 
What are your thoughts on the upcoming semifinal with St. John Fisher? 
St. John Fisher is a very strong team who has had a lot of success this season. Much of their success comes from three key players- Erin Hulbert, Caroline Robertson and Nicole Robinson. When any one of them get into a groove, they can be hard to stop. The three of them together form some really nice inside/outside play. 
 
I am confident with our game plan that with a few small adjustments we can key in on a few areas they rely on, and with our team's work ethic on the floor, I am very confident that we can get the job done. I believe my players are the hardest working team in the Empire 8, hands down. They will find a way to make things happen. They are gritty and love to be the underdog. 
 
I'm sure people view us as the underdog in this game and that's okay. There have been multiple times this year when we have been down by double digits and dig ourselves out purely because of our determination, heart and unity. I'm extremely proud of where we are, but we are not finished yet. We are coming to this game with a fight and will give our all every minute of the game. 
 
What should we expect from the game?  What do you believe are the keys to victory? 
We should expect anything in tournament play, right? This is the exciting and fun part of any conference tournament. It will be a tough fight for both teams. 
 
We have been working to get to this point all season, so our team is ready and excited to be part of it. However, just being a part of it is not enough for us and we have every intention to come to make our mark. 
 
The keys to victory against St. John Fisher are that we need defensive stops. We must limit scoring opportunities for a few and make others step up. They are strong inside and outside so we need to disrupt their actions and limit their second effort shots. We must win the battle of the boards, and on the offensive end execute our game plan while reading the defense. We'll need patience and must make reads accordingly. 
 
Our strongest asset, which has led to our victories this year, is when we get defensive stops that feed into our offensive attack on the other end. 
 
We are prepared and excited for the opportunity to play Fisher on their home court. We have beat them once this year on their floor which automatically builds confidence--let's get two wins.
 
What were the differences between your two games with St. John Fisher this season?
In game one, we rebounded the ball well against a team that is bigger than us in nearly every position. We also had three players in double figures with two more very close behind. Another key factor was that we were able to get 20 free throw attempts and converted 19 of them. This was a major contributor to our victory down the stretch in the fourth quarter. 
 
In game two, we were out rebounded by 12, which is something we do not allow. We pride ourselves on our ability to rebound the ball well and get defensive stops. St. John Fisher is a very good team that on any given night has five-to-six individuals that can score in double figures, and that is what happened to us on our home floor. 
 
They were able to get to the free throw line 20 times, capitalizing on 19 of those shots, which was all too familiar from game one. The situation was just reversed. We only got to the free throw line 13 times which hurt us. 
 
We also didn't take the right shots in game two. Fisher did a nice job taking away what we wanted, especially in the second quarter. We made some great adjustments in the second half and saw a difference in the scoring column, but it wasn't enough when we gave up 25 points in the third quarter. We just cannot allow that.
 
A commonality in both games for us against Fisher this year is that we hit a lull in the second quarter. As we face this game we will be more focused and aware of this issue and strategize to overcome it.
 
Friday's other semifinal features Sage vs. Stevens. Houghton split with Sage, while losing both contests against the Ducks during the regular season.

SEMIFINAL #2:

About (#2) Sage: Sage Roster |  Sage Schedule |  Sage Stats 

• Overall Record: 18-7
• Conference Record: 12-4
• Last E8 Tournament Appearance: First Appearance
• Last Conference Championship: None

 About (#3) Stevens: Stevens Roster |  Stevens Schedule |  Stevens Stats

• Overall Record: 13-12
• Conference Record: 10-6
• Last E8 Tournament Appearance: 2016-17
• Overall E8 Tournament Record: 9-7
• Last Conference Championship: 2015-16 

A win on Friday will move Houghton into the E8 Championship on Saturday at 4 p.m.