GENEVA, N.Y.—William Smith College senior midfielder Maddie Montgomery factored into all six goals as she lifted the third-ranked Herons to a 6-5 victory over 19th-ranked St. John Fisher on a rain-soaked afternoon on Boswell Field at David J Urick Stadium. With the win, the Herons extended their program-record winning streak to 20 games.
 
William Smith (20-0) advances to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2017 where it will take on fifth-ranked Tufts. The Jumbos defeated seventh-ranked Wesleyan 11-8 in today's second game. Tomorrow's quarterfinal contest is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.
 
In addition to her six points (5g, 1a), Montgomery won a game-high five draw controls and had three ground balls. She also had a caused turnover in the closing seconds of the game to seal the victory. Junior Kate Risley had a team-high four ground balls. Sophomore Maura Smeader played all 60 minutes in goal and made four saves.
 
Sydney Carpenter led the way for the Cardinals (17-3) with two goals and two draw controls and she was one of five St. John Fisher players with two caused turnovers. Mary Fiorentino added a goal and an assist. Lily Goodsell played all 60 minutes in goal for the Cardinals. She made six saves and had a game-high five ground balls.
 
 
RECORD WATCH

• The 20 wins this season for William Smith match the program record for wins in a season. The Herons had 20 wins in 2017 and also advanced to the quarterfinals.
• Maddie Montgomery's first goal of the game was her 74th of the season, setting a new William Smith single-season record. She now has 78 goals this season.

 
KEY STATS

• The Herons held an 18-16 edge in shots and a 17-15 advantage in ground balls. William Smith dominated the battle in the draw circle 11-4.
• With the rain and strong defensive efforts, both teams struggled to clear the ball. The Cardinals were 16-of-21 clearing the ball and William Smith was 16-of-22 on its clear attempts.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The defenses set the tone early in this afternoon's contest with both teams coming up with stops in the first 10 minutes of the game.
• The Herons finally broke the deadlock with just over five minutes remaining in the frame. Montgomery ripped home a free position goal for her 74th goal of the season. Less than two minutes later, Montgomery picked up her 75th goal of the year slamming home a feed from fellow senior Molly Davis.
• With 31 seconds remaining in the opening frame, The Cardinals found a hole in the William Smith defense and Carpenter flipped a shot past Smeader for her 42nd goal of the year. The tally kicked off a four-goal run that spanned the entire second quarter and most of the third frame.
• Exactly three minutes into the second quarter, Mary Fiorentino split the defense and scored her 29th goal of the season.
• Cara Landry gave the Cardinals their first lead of the game with 7:11 left in the half. Her 16th goal of the season was unassisted.  It would be the final goal of the first 30 minutes.
• MyKenzie Black extended Fisher's lead to two goals just over seven minutes into the third quarter. Her 22^nd goal of the year was assisted by Fiorentino.
• Montgomery completed her hat trick with 5:54 left in the third frame. Her 76th goal of the season snapped a 28-minute scoring drought for the Herons. It was a woman-up goal. Two minutes later, Montgomery notched another free position goal to make it 4-4 heading into the fourth quarter.
• Nearly nine minutes into the final frame, junior Allie McGinty gave the Herons the lead off a feed from Montgomery. The goal was her 29th of the season and extended McGinty's point streak to 41 games.
• With 3:35 remaining in regulation, Carpenter beat Smeader on a free-position shot for her second goal of the game and 43rd tally of the year.
• Just over a minute later, St. John Fisher was called for a three-second violation while Montgomery had possession of the ball in her stick. Montgomery stepped up and converted on the free position attempt for her 78th goal of the year.
• Montgomery then sealed the victory with 18 seconds remaining in the game with a skillful trail check in the midfield.

 
COACH'S CORNER
"It's always a tough game with St. John Fisher," Head Coach Anne Phillips said. "I think the rain was difficult on both teams and neither of us played our best. I think the difference in today's game was that Maddie had five goals and one assist and was a part of every single scoring play. In the NCAA tournament, it doesn't matter how much you win by, you just have to win and advance. Ultimately, you have to find a way and we found a way today. We came from behind and had the skill set to get it done."