The John Carroll Blue Streaks will once again be competing for an Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament title after defeating the Ohio Northern Polar Bears by a final score of 64-49 Thursday evening at the Tony DeCarlo Varsity Center.

JCU has now won five consecutive league postseason games, its longest such stretch in program history.

Ohio Northern had swept the regular season series with the Blue Streaks, but John Carroll was determined to change its fortunes in the playoffs.

That appeared to be the mindset when John Carroll had a strong start, bursting out to a 7-0 run as the game got underway. 

After two shot-clock violations in a row for Ohio Northern, head coach Michele Durand took a timeout, which prompted a 5-0 run for the Polar Bears.

Still, John Carroll was in command, and when Gabrielle Gevaudan dropped in a pair of free throws with 3:27 left in the opening quarter, the Blue Streaks were still out in front, 13-8.

Things would change. The Blue Streaks went over six minutes without a point, all the while watching as the Polar Bears took charge.  ONU took the lead by the end of the first quarter with a score of 15-13, then scored the first four points of the second to build what would be its largest lead of the evening at 19-13 following a Sydney Ward jumper in the paint at the 8:27 mark.

An Abby Adler three with 7:05 left to play in the opening half finally ended the lengthy scoring drought for the home team, and John Carroll fought their way back into the game. 

Olivia Nagy then swished a three to tie the game at 19 as part of a 14-2 run to close out the half.  The Blue and Gold held the Polar Bears to just six points in the second quarter to take a 27-21 lead into the break.

Another slow start plagued John Carroll in the third, as Ohio Northern started out the second half on an 8-0 run. Jaclyn Yankle's three at the 6:27 mark put the Polar Bears on top, 29-27.  Shelby Ford then stepped up as the unlikely hero, as she made just her fourth three-pointer of the season to put JCU back ahead, 30-29.

Brynn Serbin answered for Ohio Northern to once again give the visitors the lead at 32-20 with 5:47 to play in the quarter, but the tide was about to turn big time for the Blue Streaks. A 14-0 John Carroll run, started by an Olivia Nagy lay-up and capped by a Nicole Heffington three ball, gave John Carroll a 44-32 advantage with just under three minutes remaining in the period.

Serbin hit a buzzer beater at the end of the third quarter to make the score 47-38, which then led to Ohio Northern making two more three-pointers to start the fourth. Suddenly, the score was 47-44 and there was still eight minutes to play.

Just as quickly as Ohio Northern had climbed back in the game, John Carroll was able to respond to end the drama. A Heffington three and lay-up was followed by a Gevaudan lay-up and three, and the 10-0 burst essentially put the contest out of reach as JCU led 57-44 with 5:26 showing on the clock. The Polar Bears managed just five points the rest of the way.
 
John Carroll (23-4) was paced by Nagy totaled 17 points, 13 rebounds, three assists, five steals, and five blocks, adding another remarkable game to her career. Heffington followed with 13 points and nine rebounds for the Blue Streaks. Gevaudan finished with 11 points, all in the second half.

For the Polar Bears, Serbin went 5 for 10 from the three-point line, giving her a team-high 15 points. Yankle, a senior, ended her season with a 12-point night.

The Blue Streaks will look to defend their OAC title against Baldwin Wallace in Berea, Ohio on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. in the league championship game. The two teams split their regular season series, each winning on their own home floor with the margins of victories both six points or less.