Box Score While recent history against Otterbein certainly had not been in John Carroll's favor, the Blue Streaks snapped a five-game losing streak against the Cardinals on Wednesday night in the Tony DeCarlo Varsity Center, winning by a final score of 88-79. The win marked the Blue Streaks' first win over the Cardinals in over three years, dating back to their last win on Dec. 18, 2010.

Senior Missy Spahar dropped in 31 points; Allie Lustig, one game removed from recording her 400th-career assist, scored 15 while dishing out five assists; and the Blue Streaks improved to 13-1 on while also improving to 7-0 at home this season.

"I think everybody likes being home and being in the normal routine of the day," said head coach Kelly Morrone. "It was nice to get as many fans as we did. It was nice to have that energy in the stands."

The first half consisted of a slower pace, with fouls being called on both end but neither team really being able to establish dominance over the other. The Blue Streaks (13-1, 8-1 OAC) trailed by one, 16-15, after a Taylor Pifher jumper gave the Cardinals (6-10, 2-7 OAC) a narrow lead.   

But the Blue Streaks responded with a 9-0 run, capped off by a layup from freshman Katlyn Spahar, with the assist coming from junior Emily Taylor. JCU seemed to be on the path to pulling away from Otterbein, but the Cardinals had other plans as they put together an 8-0 run to tie the game at 24. The Blue Streaks led by six with less than 10 seconds remaining in the first half, but a last second lay up from Otterbein's Chelsea Reed cut JCU's lead to just four at halftime, 43-39.

In the second half, the Blue and Gold came out with a fire beneath them. A 17-6 run to start the half boosted the lead to 15 for the Blue Streaks, their largest margin yet, with just 13:18 remaining in the game.

But, to follow suit of the first half, the Cardinals fired right back. Otterbein used a 7-0 run to narrow the deficit to eight, 60-52. A few minutes later, Taylor drained a 3-pointer to push JCU's lead back to double digits, 65-54, but another 7-0 run by Otterbein cut that lead back to just four, 65-61 with 7:56 remaining.

As any senior leader is supposed to do, Lustig answered back by completing an and-one opportunity, giving JCU a 6-0 run and a 71-61 lead.
With the Blue Streaks clinging to a 76-68 lead, Lustig again proved vital, sinking a 3-pointer to give JCU a 79-68 lead with four minutes left in the game. From there on out, the Blue Streaks iced the game, winning by a final score of 88-79.

"They just find ways to win," said Morrone. "We were so out of sync in that first half … We just want to make adjustments at halftime and not buy into the emotion. Sometimes finding ways to win and being good at that is just as good as being a knockdown 3-point team."

The women's basketball team remains at home on Saturday to take on Ohio Northern at 3 p.m.