Box Score

BALTIMORE, MD -

The Basics
• Score: Johns Hopkins 66, Messiah 86
• Records: JHU (0-1), Messiah (1-0)
• Location: Baltimore, MD · Goldfarb Gym
• The Short Story: The Johns Hopkins women's basketball team dropped its season opener 86-66 to Messiah Tuesday in Goldfarb Gym. Sophomore Lillian Scott led all players with a career-high 17 points.

How it Happened
• The Blue Jays and Falcons played a close game to begin the first quarter, with Johns Hopkins working out to an 8-5 lead off a made field goal by Marissa Varnado. Messiah quickly countered, pulling away to a 16-10 lead before the Blue Jays responded with fastbreak layup by Lillian Scott, her first points of a career night. Messiah used a pair of three-pointers by Hannah Brown to earn a 26-16 lead at the end of the first period.
• Messiah retained the momentum to begin the second quarter, extending its lead to 30-16 in the first minute of play before Rachel Cook scored a layup and a free-throw to cut the lead to 30-19. The teams played an eventful final five minutes of the first half as the Blue Jays and Falcons each scored 16 points. The teams traded three-pointers to spark the run. Messiah hit four three-pointers in the final 4:47 of the second quarter, while Johns Hopkins earned three trips to the free-throw line and shot 6-of-6, including four makes by Scott. Lexie Scholtz hit a 50-foot three-point attempt as time expired for the 49-36 halftime score.
• Scott reached double-digit points in the first half, with three-field goals, including a three-pointer and shooting 5-of-6 from the free-throw line. The Blue Jays took advantage of their trips to the line, as they recorded double the points Messiah earned off free-throws. However, Johns Hopkins struggled from the three-point arc, finishing the half 2-of-9 after shooting 0-of-4 from behind the arc in the first quarter. Messiah shot .625 from behind the arc, with 10 three-pointers in the opening half.
• The teams played a quiet third quarter as Messiah outscored Hopkins 17-12. JHU matched Messiah's production through the first 6:22 of play with each team tallying six points. The Falcons used the three-point arc and took advantage of JHU turnovers to increase its lead to 66-46 before a made shot by Caroline Corcoran cut their lead to 66-48 at the end of the third.
• The Blue Jays limited second chance points for the Falcons in the final quarter, allowing only one offensive rebound by Messiah in the fourth quarter. Johns Hopkins pieced together a seven-point run to cut Messiah's lead to 70-55 before the Falcons outscored the Blue Jays 16-11 in the final 5:07 of the game to earn the 86-66 victory. For the third straight quarter, Hopkins had the final say as Jess Sweeney hit a free-throw to close out the game.
• The Blue Jays made 21-of-28 free throws in the game and limited fouls to earn the advantage from the free-throw line. On the other hand, Messiah proved to be the stronger team from behind the three-point arc, shooting 15-of-24 to JHU's 3-of-11. Hopkins also posted a narrow advantage in defensive rebounds with 27 in the game, including five by Scott.

Inside the Box Score
• Lillian Scott scored a career-high 17 points in the game. Her previous career-high was 10 points, scored at Washington College in last season's final game. Scott shot 4-of-10 from the field, 2-of-3 from the three-point arc and 7-of-8 from the free-throw line. Scott also pulled down a career-high and team-leading seven rebounds.
• Lexie Scholtz tied a few of her personal bests, scoring 11 points, dishing out six assists and making four steals.
• The Blue Jays shot .750 (21-of-28) from the free-throw line. Johns Hopkins posted a free-throw percentage of at least .750 in 10 games last season.

What it Means
• Johns Hopkins falls to 27-16 all-time in season openers. The Blue Jays have gone 6-9 in games after dropping their season opener, including 3-0 since 2010.
• With the loss, JHU holds a 1-10 record against Messiah. The Falcons have won five-straight against the Blue Jays.

Up Next
• The Blue Jays will host Trinity (DC) and Emory in the Durgala Classic November 18 through November 20. Johns Hopkins will take on Trinity (DC) Friday at 7 p.m. before facing Emory Saturday at 4 p.m.
• JHU will begin Centennial Conference play Tuesday, November 22 as it hosts McDaniel at 6 p.m.

--30--