UNIVERISTY HEIGHTS, Ohio – Despite trailing late, on the road, against a Top-10 ranked team, on a school night, the Otterbein women's basketball team dug deep and found a way to escape the Tony DeCarlo Varsity Center with a thrilling 57-52 upset victory over John Carroll…

QUICK HITTERS:

• The Blue Streaks, entering the night ranked No. 8 in the latest national poll and holding a 10-game win streak, lose for just the third time all season…
   
• The Cardinals, who trailed by six points late, used a 12-0 run down the stretch (behind sophomore guard Katie McCrary) to stun the host school. Otterbein is now 15-6 overall and 9-5 within the Ohio Athletic Conference.
   

HOW IT PLAYED OUT:

• A tough offensive first quarter from both sides ended with John Carroll holding a 9-6 lead.
   
• Otterbein erupted for 20 points in the second quarter, good enough to flip the script and take a marginal 26-22 lead into the break.
   
• JCU handed the favor right back in the third, outscoring the Cards 18-10 after beginning the frame on a 12-4 spurt.
   
• The final period was a one-possess dogfight until the Streaks opened that 46-40 lead with 4:26 on the game clock. Not going anywhere, Otterbein flew back with a lopsided 12-0 push after 10-consecutive points from the lightning rod McCrary.
   
• Otterbein held that six-point cushion with 38 seconds left. JCU kept things interesting after somehow making a pair of wild three-point attempts, but the Cards made just enough attempts at the free-throw line to survive.
   

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:

• McCrary led all players with 18 points while Angelia Jackson posted a double-double with 15 points and 10 boards.
   
• Otterbein limited John Carroll into shooting 4 of 17 (.235) in the fourth quarter.
   
• The Cardinals, out-rebounded 45-27 by JCU in the first meeting, worked their way to a 46-40 edge on the glass this time around.
   
• All-American Olivia Nagy went for 16 points and 16 rebounds on the home side.

 
FURTHER DETAILS:

• This marked the first college game inside the facility for Otterbein forward Kathleen DeCarlo, visibly emotional afterward in the arena named for her late grandfather (who passed away in 2018). DeCarlo had missed the last two seasons with injuries.
   
• All six of Otterbein's losses this season have come to teams ranked nationally at some point; Wheaton, Marietta, Baldwin Wallace and JCU.
   

UP NEXT:

• Otterbein gets to finish out the regular season at home, beginning a three-game homestand with Heidelberg come Saturday at 5 p.m.