PITTSFIELD, N.Y. – Sophomore forward Grace Florsheim netted two goals, as the Skidmore College field hockey team started the 2016 season on a high note, shutting out St. John Fisher 6-0, on Thursday afternoon.
 
Gabby Hyman, Seeley Fancher, Miranda Davenport, and Leigh FitzGerald also scored goals for the No. 11 Thoroughbreds (1-0), who have won the home opener in each of the last eight seasons. Krista Lamoreaux added an assist.
 
Florsheim got the Thoroughbreds on the board 10 minutes in, off a rebound. Skidmore then turned up the offensive pressure, getting three goals in a six-minute span. FitzGerald made it 2-0 when she received a corner from Lamoreaux, beating the Fisher goalie. Two minutes later, Davenport scored her first collegiate goal, giving Skidmore a 3-0 lead. Fancher completed the flurry in the 31st minute, collecting the rebound off a save, as Skidmore entered halftime with the 4-0 lead.
 
In the second half, Hyman made it 5-0, scoring off her own rebound. Florsheim closed the scoring on an individual effort, sprinting up the middle of the field, sliding a low shot past the goalie.
 
In goal, Zoe McGuire was stellar, stopping all four shots faced. McGuire was able to handle a flurry of shots in the 55th minute, when the Cardinals had their best scoring chance. McGuire deftly parried two shots by St. John Fisher's Emily Markarian from point blank range, to preserve the shutout.
 
Skidmore outshot St. John Fisher (0-1) 18-8, and received 10 corner kicks.
 
The Thoroughbreds return home to Wagner Park for their home opener, hosting Babson on Saturday for a noon start.