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John Carroll University Athletics

home of the Blue Streaks
Heff sets the record vs. ONU in the OAC SF
Tim Phillis, News Herald
Nicole Heffington became JCU's all-time leading scorer on Thursday. 
50
Ohio Northern ONU 17-8,10-6 OAC
64
Winner John Carroll JCU 22-3,15-2 OAC
Ohio Northern ONU
17-8,10-6 OAC
50
Final
64
John Carroll JCU
22-3,15-2 OAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Ohio Northern ONU 17 12 14 7 50
John Carroll JCU 18 12 18 16 64

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Matt Lyons, Staff Writer

Heffington's History and Nagy's Triple Double Spark OAC Semifinal Win over ONU

UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, Ohio -- On a historic evening in the Tony DeCarlo Varsity Center, No. 1 seed Blue Streaks took down the No. 5 seed Ohio Northern in the Ohio Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Tournament Semifinal, 64-50.

The victory propels nationally-ranked No. 10/12 John Carroll into the OAC Championship for the fourth straight season, set for a rematch for the third year in a row with Baldwin Wallace. 

"I am very proud about this win. The seniors just took it and ran with it and played incredibly hard," said Head Coach Beth Andrews. "As soon as we got the defensive stops, we turned back into John Carroll and were able to recover from Ohio Northern's strong defense."

While John Carroll acquired a ticket to the OAC Championship, Nicole Heffington set the program record for career points, passing Melissa Spahar's previous record of 1,902 points. This record was broken in the second quarter with 6:15 remaining on the clock. Heffington now has 1,912 career points. Spahar broke the record on February 22, 2014, just over eight years ago (2,924 days), on the day the Blue Streaks clinched the program's first-ever OAC regular season crown. 

"This record means a lot to me," said Heffington. "But getting the win was more important. I am so thankful for my teammates and everyone who has made this possible."

Olivia Nagy also played incredibly. The senior center tallied a triple-double for the second time in three games. Thanks in part to the duo's efforts, the Blue Streaks now have a shot at their second staight OAC Championship, this time with an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament on the line. 

"It means a lot to me. Coming in as a freshman, I had no idea how great this team would be," said senior Olivia Nagy. "I am just thankful for the opportunity that this team has given me."

The game started off intensely as soon as Nagy won the tip off. Both teams were strong defensively. It took two minutes until Heffington got points on the board from behind the arc. ONU responded with a three-pointer of their own by Brynn Serbin. 

The game stayed even throughout the first quarter. When one team scored, the other team responded, whether it was from behind the arc, beyond the charity stripe, or inside the paint. After being down 15-7, the Polar Bears fought back to a score of 18-17.

The second quarter started off just like the first, with hard-nosed OAC basketball. Both teams fought back and forth, and neither could find the spark to take a strong lead from the other. Heffington and Serbin combined for eight triples in the first half and neither of them lost their spark in the second quarter. 

At the half, the score was 30-29 John Carroll, and Heffington was recognized as JCU's all-time leading scorer. The stats were consistent after 20 minutes, including 15-13 boards and 8-6 in assists, both in favor of JCU.

ONU and JCU came out firing to start the third quarter, as both teams got more aggressive and the foul counts went up. The easy lanes were not easy to find, so Hannah Bouchy found the reverse layup to get the Blue Streak lead up to five. 

But the Polar Bears did not quit just yet as the Pittsburgh native Serbin proceeded to still be hot from three. At the end of three, the score was 48-43 with just ten minutes remaining of hard-fought basketball at the Tony DeCarlo Varsity Center.

Down by five, the Polar Bears needed points on the board, but John Carroll's defense held firm. With a margin to work with, the JCU offense went to work and provided more of a cushion. A Sarah Balfour three-pointer at 4:15 pushed the lead to 55-44, the first double-digit lead of the day. 

Balfour's beautiful triple proved to be the dagger. Ohio Northern never slimmed the lead under nine, despite their best efforts. And in the final moments of the game, Olivia Nagy worked more magic. She tallied her 10th and 11th blocks of the day for a triple double, also tying her career-high for blocks. The Lakewood native compiled 15 points and 13 rebounds in a show of force in the post. 

Nagy is one of just three players in all of NCAA Division III with two triple-doubles this season. Tonight's effort marked the fourth of her career, and the second in three games. 

Nicole Heffington finished with 19 points for the day. Senior Hannah Bouchy also hit double figures with 10 points in her return, as did Balfour with 10 big points. 

The Blue Streaks will host the OAC Championship at 3 pm on Saturday against Baldwin Wallace Yellow Jackets.
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