Playing a team on the road with a single digit national ranking and a single loss on its record was a daunting challenge for the John Carroll Blue Streaks, made all the tougher by playing a tenative first game.

Ultimately, the Blue Streaks would fall in three games to #4 ranked Ohio Nothern Friday night at the ONU Sports Center, but John Carroll would make it quite competitive in the Ohio Athletic Conference opener for both schools

Box Score

After falling 25-12 in the first game, JCU regrouped and took the Polar Bears to the limit before letting its slip away in game two (26-24). JCU also had a lead early in game three but lost ina  close battle, 25-22.

Game two was the Blue Streaks best effort. JCU led early on 6-1 and was still ahead 22-20 before the Polar Bears put together five kills as part of scoring its final six points to take the game.

Meredith McDiarmid (Strongsville, OH, St. Joseph Academy) and MaryEileen Dalton (Chicago, IL, St. Ignatius Prep) each had a team-high nine kills, with McDiarmid also topping the Streaks with 15 digs. 

The big difference was in offensive efficiency for the two teams, as ONU finished with a .277 hitting percentage compared to John carroll's .147.

Ohio Northern is now 19-1 on the year and 1-0 in the OAC, while John Carroll falls to 8-12 and 0-1 in league play.