Swarthmore, PA- The Johns Hopkins women's basketball team looked to earn a second straight win in Centennial Conference play over Swarthmore on Tuesday night. The Blue Jays stormed out to a double-digit lead in the first quarter and used yet another great defensive effort to hold onto that lead for the entire game and knock off the Garnet, 61-49.
 
The Blue Jays extended their lead to double digits with an impressive 12-0 run to close out the first quarter. In the final seconds of the quarter, Kara Milliken stole the ball away from Swarthmore and quickly got it up to Natalie Mann. Mann, with a defender in her face, from the deep right wing fired up a jumper and swished the net as time expired in the quarter to cap off Hopkins' run and give them a 21-6 lead.
 
Mann was impressive throughout the first half for JHU, finishing with eight points, including two baskets from beyond the arc. Hopkins would keep up their steady offensive pace in the second period and took a 32-18 lead into the halftime break. The Garnet, like many others this season, were unable to find a rhythm offensively against the Blue Jays stingy defense in the second quarter as they shot just 15% from the floor.
 
Swarthmore had their best quarter offensively in the game coming out of halftime. The Garnet were very efficient shooting 7-for-11 from the floor. JHU managed to keep the lead above ten points with contributions from up and down the roster in the third quarter. Most notably, Greta Miller dropped five in the quarter including an and-one layup. Macie Feldman and Jadyn Murray also kicked in four points to help the cause.
 
In the final quarter, Swarthmore was able to pull the game back within two possessions after scoring on five straight trips down the floor to cut the deficit down to four. The Blue Jays needed someone to step up, and graduate student Olivia Parisi did just that. In the game's final minutes, Parisi scored seven points in what would be a 12-5 run for the Blue Jays to help them close out another victory in conference. Feldman knocked down a few free throws at the end to cap off the win.
 
Johns Hopkins had a bunch of different scoring options in the win as six different players finished with six or more points. Parisi led the way for JHU with 13, with Mann and Miller also having double figures with 10 a piece. Miller also pulled down a season-high 12 rebounds for her third double-double of the season.
 
The Garnet were led in points by Kim Kockenmeister who had 13, followed by Anna Hansson who contributed 12. Despite the comeback effort, Swarthmore fell to 4-8 (2-5) on the season.
 
The Blue Jays advanced to 8-4 (5-2) on the year and have now five out of six games. The win gave them their second road win in conference play on the season, and it is the fourth time they have held a Centennial foe to under 50 points.
 
JHU is back on the floor in a couple days when they take on in-state conference rival McDaniel on Thursday, January 12 (6 pm).