Forty-nine days ago, John Carroll Women’s Basketball suffered their first loss of the 2021-2022 season in a heartbreaking 81-80 loss against Marietta College. 

Flash forward to Saturday, Feb. 5, No. 9 John Carroll University got sweet revenge on the Pioneers as they defeated them 83-67 in Marietta, Ohio, at Ban Johnson Arena.

“It felt really good to redeem ourselves from our first loss earlier this season,” said Kaelyn Underwood ‘23.”We worked really hard the past week to prepare and to see our hard work pay off was great.”

John Carroll’s aggressive defense and active hands allowed them to force 22 turnovers, translating into 25 points for the Blue and Gold. 

“I am extremely proud of the team for getting a third road win in a row,” said John Carroll Women’s Basketball Head Coach Beth Andrews. “Every team you play on the road is tough, and Marietta had the crowd to make it that much tougher. Our leadership remained positive and calm the entire day to ensure the rest of the team felt as if it was just another game.”

The Blue Streaks’ sharpshooting was unmatched the whole game. John Carroll outshot Marietta from the field 50% to 34.8%. 

“Overall, we have improved a lot since our last game against Marietta,” said Underwood.” We went into this game knowing we had to redeem ourselves, so we all played like we knew we could.”

Marietta came out on fire in the first quarter of the game as they outscored John Carroll 9-2 in the first three minutes of play. Unfortunately for the Pioneers, John Carroll mounted a comeback. With five seconds left in the first quarter, Hannah Bouchy drained a 3-pointer to give John Carroll a 17-16 lead. 

Sailing off the momentum from taking the lead late in the first quarter, John Carroll’s offense began to light up in the second quarter. Marietta quickly countered the Blue Streaks as Jill Congrove hit a 3-pointer for the Pioneers with 6:05 left in the first half, giving Marietta a 24-23 lead. 

John Carroll went on a 13-point scoring streak for the remainder of the half, resulting in a 36-24 lead going into halftime. 

Coming out of halftime, both teams displayed the biggest offensive quarter yet. 

Marietta’s offense was unbreakable as they outscored John Carroll 30-27 in the quarter, but the Blue Streaks’ quick counter-reaction throughout the whole quarter to the Pioneers’ baskets resulted in them maintaining a 63-54 lead going into the fourth and final quarter. 

In the last 10 minutes of the contest, Marietta displayed some of their strongest defense of the night as they put tight pressure pressing John Carroll. However, the Blue Streaks broke out of the press and maintained a two-figure lead the whole quarter, resulting in a victory. 

 “Since our loss in early December, our team has continued to improve,” said Andrews. “In the beginning of the season, teams do a lot of figuring things out, and we are on our way to knowing what works best for us!”

John Carroll’s victory showed the depth and strength of their team as six of the seven scorers reached double-figures. The depth and strength of the Blue and Gold could make the team unstoppable as they approach the OAC Tournament. 

“Having that many players in double digits is awesome!” remarked Andrews. “It goes with what we write on the board before each game, ‘We Mentality.’ They shared the ball and shot with confidence. All of them are capable of numbers like this.”

Graduate student Gabrielle Gevaudan had her best career game, capturing 17 points. Underwood followed Gevaudan, matching her career-best with 16 points on the afternoon. 

“When the opportunity came to play in such a big game I took advantage of it,” said Underwood. “With really big players being in foul trouble, I knew I had to give 100%.”

Olivia Nagy, Nicole Heffington, Abby Adler and Sarah Balfour all reached double figures as well with 14,12, 11 and 10 points each, respectively.

Heffington also captured a double-double in the victory, finishing with 12 points and 11 rebounds. 

For the Pioneers, Erin Hahn was just shy of a double-double as she led the team in points with 13 and boards with 9. Olivia Gribble and Devin Heffner also reached double digits in points with 11 and 10 points, respectively. 

With the win, John Carroll improves to 16-2 on the season and 11-1 in Ohio Athletic Conference play. With the loss, Marietta falls to 17-4, and 10-4 in OAC competition. 

John Carroll will look to extend their 10 game win streak as they return to University Heights, Ohio, to compete against Otterbein University. Tip-off at the Tony DeCarlo Varsity Center is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Marietta will finish their homestand on Wednesday, Feb. 9, taking on the University of Mount Union for a 7 p.m. contest at Ban Johnson Arena.