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John Carroll University Athletics

home of the Blue Streaks
Ava Ryncarz vs. ONU
Ben Peskar
The Blue Streaks fought til the end against the Polar Bears. 
68
Winner Ohio Northern ONU 12-1,6-0 OAC
59
John Carroll JCU 8-5,3-3 OAC
Winner
Ohio Northern ONU
12-1,6-0 OAC
68
Final
59
John Carroll JCU
8-5,3-3 OAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Ohio Northern ONU 16 18 16 18 68
John Carroll JCU 20 10 17 12 59

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Kaeleigh Patriski, Staff Writer

Women's Basketball Fights Hard, but Wore Down by Polar Bears

UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS – John Carroll Women's Basketball hosted the Polar Bears of Ohio Northern University in the first home match up of the year on Saturday. The Blue Streaks came into the matchup 8-4 on the season, 1-0 in the new year. The Polar Bears came into today with a record of 11-1, their only loss of the year coming to Ohio Wesleyan back in November, ranked #20 in NCAA Division III.

The Blue Streaks looked in position to play spoiler against the Polar Bears, with a red-hot start.

But the Polar Bears wore JCU down in the paint en route to a 68-59 win.  

JCU struck first with a jumper made by Olivia Giunta and continued to light up the court in the first quarter with a lead of 20-16. ONU's Kasey Knippen finished out the quarter with a buzzer beater for two. 

ONU quickly tied things up in the beginning of the second quarter, but the Blue Streaks battled back for an evenly matched second quarter with 7 lead changes. Both teams had playmakers and impressive plays, showing why the OAC is one of the best conferences in D-III. Brook Allen led the way for the Polar Bears with 10 points and 3 rebounds in the opening half, closely followed by Brynn Serbin with 9 points and 4 rebounds. For JCU, freshman Ava Ryncarz led the scoring in the first stanza with 8 points and the defense with 5 rebounds. Fellow freshman Carmen Heuker helped out plenty on both sides of the court. The game remained close with a score of 34-30 ONU entering the third quarter. 

Both teams came out of halftime with renewed energy and intensity. Halle Landies started the scoring for JCU with a quick 3-pointer out of the gate, but ONU kept their foot on the gas to extend their lead early on in the new half. The Blue Streaks battled back and closed the lead with a strong effort from Jaylen Hoffmann giving her all on both sides of the ball, leading a full court press on defense and fast tempo on offense. Ohio Northern never gave up and took the lead back with less than a minute left in the quarter, ending with a score of 50-47 with 10 minutes left to play. 

Both teams slowed the pace down to begin the last quarter, but kept up the intensity. Fans of both teams were on the edge of their seats watching the clock wind down on the contest. Brooke Allen of  the Polar Bears continues to influence the game on both sides of the ball. Mackenzie Suprano scored a critical 3-point shot to give the visiting team the lead late in the game that they held onto for the rest of the game. 

Standouts for the visiting Polar Bears included Kristen Luersman and Brooke Allen with 18 points a piece. Brynn Serbin was close behind with 17 points also contributing 4 steals and 6 assists. 

JCU had some stars shine on the court as well. Halle Landies led in points with 14 and Ava Ryncarz led in defensive rebounds with 8, adding 10 points. Maddie Pietrowski aided the effort with 8 rebounds as well along with 4 points, 3 steals, and an assist. The Blue Streaks played as a team today and all added to the game in one way or another. 

The Blue Streaks will be back at home on Wednesday, January 11 against Otterbein in another OAC show down. 
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