John Carroll won its fourth consecutive road game thanks to a quick start and a strong finish Wednesday night in Tiffin, Ohio.
The Blue Streaks used a 21-6 burst over the first 11 minutes to build a sizeable lead, but had to withstand a furious rally by Heidelberg to emerge with a 61-54 victory.
Box Score
Heidelberg led early by a 4-2 count, but five consecutive points by Lee Jennings and a three-pointer by Whitney Hamilton kicked off a 14-0 run that staked JCU a 16-4 lead through the first ten minutes.
John Carroll continued the onslaught, with Katie Mahoney’s three-pointer at the 9:12 mark putting the Blue Streaks lead at 15 points. JCU would continue to keep the pressure on and took a 32-21 lead into the intermission.
Heidelberg would play inspired ball in the second half to turn what looked to be a rout into a tightly contested affair. JCU still had an 11-point lead with 13 minutes to play in regulation when the ‘Berg began to rally. Spurred on by four points from Jenny Miller and capped off by a three-pointer from Stacey Barker, Heidelberg would tie the game at 38-38 at the 9:49 mark of the second half.
Although caught, John Carroll would not be surpassed. Mahoney answered just inside nine minutes to play with her second three-pointer of the night, and the Blue Streaks would embark on a 16-8 run to go on top, 54-46, with just over three minutes remaining.
From there, Heidelberg could never get the deficit lower than four points.
John Carroll (8-6, 5-3 OAC), which won for the sixth time in its last seven times out, was paced by the duo of Lee Jennings and Caitlin Sureck who combined for 36 of the Blue Streaks’ 61 points. Jennings had her second triple double of the year with 20 points, 11 rebounds and ten assists, while Sureck had 16 points and ten boards.
Heidelberg (3-12, 2-6 OAC) was paced by 15 points from Betsy Shrider and 12 from Miller. The ‘Berg connected on just one of 13 shots from beyond the arc.