WESTMINSTER, MD – The Johns Hopkins women's basketball team outscored host McDaniel 34-14 in the third quarter to extend a 31-26 halftime lead to 65-40 and the Blue Jays went on to top the Green Terror 73-50 at the Gill Center on Tuesday night.  The Blue Jays grab their third consecutive victory and improve to 4-1 overall and 2-0 in the Centennial Conference, while the Green Terror slip to 4-2 overall and 0-2 in the Centennial.
 
The Blue Jays' five-point halftime lead was quickly trimmed to three (31-28) on a Teya McConnaha layup just 12 seconds into the third quarter, but Hopkins responded with a 20-4 run over a span of less than four minutes to push the lead to 51-32 with 6:01 remaining in the period.
 
Johns Hopkins got all 20 points during the 20-4 spurt from three players, including 10 from junior Michaela O'Neil.  O'Neil jump-started the spree with a three-pointer just 15 seconds after McConnaha's layup and she added a layup 12 seconds later to quickly push the lead to 36-28.
 
O'Neil would add another triple and converted layup on a fastbreak, while Kendall Dunham added a pair of three-pointers and Greta Miller chipped in with four points to help account for all the scoring during the run.
 
The 51-32 lead ballooned to 25 points by the end of the third quarter as the Blue Jays shot a blistering 68.4% (13-of-19) from the floor, including 71.4% (5-of-7) from beyond the arc, in the deciding period.  O'Neil (11), Dunham (6), Miller (6) and Elisabeth Peebles (5) combined for 28 of the Blue Jays' 34 points in the quarter.
 
Hopkins pushed the lead to a game-high 27 early in the fourth quarter on a Jadyn Murray layup.  The scoring slowed over the final eight minutes with the Blue Jays maintaining a lead of at least 19 points the rest of the way before settling in for the 23-point victory.
 
In a game they never trailed, the Blue Jays had jumped out to an early 7-0 lead as a Dunham layup and three-pointer helped get Hopkins off to a quick start.  The Terror had the deficit down to 10-8 as they responded to the early Blue Jay surge with an 8-3 run of their own that was capped by a pair of free throws from Lil Overcash.

Johns Hopkins led 15-9 after the first quarter and were up a first-half-high nine at 18-9 on a Peebles triple from the top of the key, but Overcash and Elaina Beckettt three-pointers bookended a 12-4 run that made it a one-point game (22-21) with just under four minutes remaining in the first half.
 
McDaniel pulled even at 26 after a traditional three-point play from Jordan McLean with 90 seconds on the first-half clock, but a Dunham three and an O'Neil layup closed the half to give Hopkins the 31-26 halftime lead and set the stage for the Blue Jays' big third quarter.

Dunham led the Blue Jays with a career-high 18 points and she added six rebounds and three assists in just 24 minutes of action.  Peebles (14) and O'Neil (13) combined for 27 points, eight rebounds, five assists and five steals in the victory.
 
Johns Hopkins shot 50% (9-of-18) from beyond the arc and 44.3% (27-of-61) from the floor while holding a decisive 47-29 advantage on the glass.
 
Overcash was the only McDaniel player to reach double figures as she punched up 11 points, but the Terror committed 21 turnovers and shot just 34% (18-of-53) from the floor in the loss.
 
Johns Hopkins will return to action on Thursday, November 30 when the Blue Jays travel to Bryn Mawr to take on the Owls in another Centennial Conference game.