John Carroll women's basketball fell in their final home game of the 2016 calendar year, losing to undefeated #12 Ohio Northern, 79-59, at the DeCarlo Varsity Center on Saturday afternoon.

JCU falls to 3-5, and 1-3 in the Ohio Athletic Conference. Ohio Northern stays unblemished, with a 9-0 overall mark and 4-0 OAC record.  

Katlyn Spahar was the leading scorer for John Carroll, notching 16 with nine rebounds. She moves into fifth place on the John Carroll all-time scoring list, passing Cindy Shumaker (1,535 - 1990-94). 

Chelbi Graham had nine points, draining two three-pointers in the second half. She added 16 rebounds, which is a career-high. Anne Principe scored six for JCU, and Shmoo Pryor had 12, including the first six of the second half. 

The Polar Bears were led by Britt Lauck's 21 points, while Jenna Dirksen contributed 13. ONU outshot JCU, 44.0% to 28.2%.

Ohio Northern opened the contest with a quick 7-0 run, starting with five points from Dirksen and ending with a Bullimore layup. John Carroll fought back with a pair of quick-trigger three-pointers from Spahar.

ONU settled in with an 18-6 lead midway through the period, as JCU took their first timeout with 5:19 on the clock. The Polar Bears would hold a 27-14 lead after a Emily Mescher layup in the waning seconds.

???????Dirksen, Lauck, and Metscher each had seven points in the first ten minutes. Spahar's pair of threes gave her a team-leading six points.

The Polar Bears extended their control to a 33-18 mark with 5:23 to play in the half. Following a tie-up in the Blue Streaks zone, Amauria Campbell sunk a left-handed layup to make it 35-18. Chelbi Graham brought the crowd to life with an athletic offensive rebound, but could not cash in the and-one. Following four ONU points, Principe drilled another three, cutting the lead to 42-24.

ONU took a 45-25 lead into the half. Principe and Spahar led JCU with six points each. Graham recorded seven rebounds, including four offensive boards. The Polar Bears shot 51.4 percent, compared to 21.6 for the Blue Streaks. John Carroll led in second chance opportunities, with 15 offensive rebounds.

John Carroll ripped off the first six points of the second half, all of the hands of Pryor. Ohio Northern settled back in, using a Bullimore layup to take a 19-point lead at 54-35. Lauck fired an and-one from behind-the-arc with 3:51 to play in the third, extending the advantage to 60-35.

After three, ONU led 68-41. In the fourth, the Blue Streaks got two three-pointers from Chelbi Graham down the stretch. The Polar Bears took the game by a 79-59 final.

Up next for JCU is a trip to Puerto Rico for a two-game tournament. Stay tuned to JCUSports.com for a live blog and more coverage.