COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Capital University women's basketball team played game two of their three-game home stretch on Saturday, hosting John Carroll University at the Capital Center. The matchup between the Comets and the Blue Streaks was a close one in the beginning, separated by only a point after the first quarter. However strong play from then on out gave the Comets a dominating 74-48 win at the final buzzer.
Capital jumps to 7-2 on the season and 2-1 within the Ohio Athletic Conference. John Carroll falls to 5-2 on the year and 2-1 in OAC play.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The first quarter was nothing short of a back-and-forth affair with Capital holding just a 13-12 lead after one.
The Capital defense shut down John Carroll in the early going of the second quarter, allowing just one point in the first four minutes of play. That scoreless streak was accompanied by an 11-point run on the other end as the Comets spread the ball out to get clean looks and easy fastbreak points.
By the half, Capital had built a 29-22 lead and looked to be on the front foot heading into the locker room.
Out of the intermission, the Comets exploded on a 24-4 run to start the third quarter and just about sealed the deal with another quarter left to play. The run got great play from multiple different contributors, thanks to
Laney Murphy's eight points and
Demi Brewer's six. Five other Comets were on the scoreboard in the period and made good use of their attempts, shooting 9-for-14 in the quarter to build their lead out to 55-34 with 10 to go.
In the fourth, Capital kept their foot on the gas and again won the quarter, this time outsourcing the Blue Streaks 19-14 in the fourth, thanks to seven huge points from
Bri O'Connor. The team led by as many as 29 points in the game, their largest lead of the season.
THE NUMBERS
Samaree Perkins put forth another impressive performance, nearly putting up a double-double by halftime. She finished with 11 points accompanied by a new career-high 13 rebounds, two assists and a steal. Her 11-points and 13-rebounds marked her fourth double-double of the year.
Leading scorer
Bri O'Connor continued her tear, knocking down 17 points and adding seven boards, a new career-high six assists, and three steals.
Laney Murphy was next with 12 points. She added six boards, an assist and a steal.
Six other Comets scored at least three or more points in the game as
Demi Brewer hit eight,
Rani Thigpen knocked down nine,
Nicole Flock was good for six,
Maddi Weiland and
Gabby Ledbetter both hit four and
Jenna Horsley netted three.
Defensively, Capital pulled down 50 rebounds – 12 more than JCU's 38. Of those 50 boards, 15 came on the offensive glass. The Comets also swatted six blocks, led by
Rani Thigpen's two.
Demi Brewer,
Maddi Weiland,
Gabby Ledbetter and Maddi Dougoud all had one block each.
The 26-point win was the second this season by the Comets as they defeated Wooster 76-50 on November 22nd. The 7-2 start is the best in program since the team went 15-2 to start the year in the 2015-16 season.
THE OPPONENT
Points - Halle Landies (11)
Assists - Carmen Heuker (3)
Rebounds - Ava Ryncarz (9)
Blocks - Kaelyn Underwood (3)
Steals - Carmen Hueker (2)
UP NEXT
The Purple and White will be back in action on Wednesday, December 14 in the contest of the Comets, taking on Olivet College. Tip-off from the Capital Center is set for 6:00 p.m.
