WAVERLY, IA – The eighth-ranked Johns Hopkins women's basketball team opened the 2025-26 regular season in commanding fashion, rolling past Luther, 95-60, Friday evening inside Levick Arena. The Blue Jays start the season with a win for the fourth straight year.
Hopkins wasted no time asserting control, racing out to a 12-0 lead to start the game—with
Macie Feldman accounting for half of those points. The Blue Jays' advantage grew to as many as 14 in the opening frame before Luther trimmed the deficit to 12 at the quarter break, 24-12.
The Blue Jays kept their foot on the gas in the second quarter. Buckets from four different players stretched the lead to 18, and another Feldman layup pushed it to 20. Just before halftime,
Kendall Dunham drilled a three-pointer at the buzzer to give Hopkins a 49-28 cushion at the break.
The Hopkins bench provided a huge spark, contributing 24 of those first-half points.
Layla Henderson led the charge with 12 on 5-of-7 shooting, including a perfect 2-for-2 from beyond the arc. Defensively, Dunham and
Faith Williamson each tallied two steals, fueling a 20-0 Hopkins edge in points off turnovers through the first 20 minutes.
Lauren Knudson took over in the third quarter, pouring in 10 of the team's 25 points and catching fire from deep. She went 3-for-4 from long range in the period, helping Hopkins extend its lead to 35 heading into the fourth.
Luther showed some late fight, outscoring Hopkins 14-10 over the first four minutes of the final frame, but the Blue Jay reserves steadied things to close out a 95-60 victory.
Feldman paced Hopkins with a game-high 14 points on an efficient 6-of-9 shooting (66.7%). The Blue Jays' balanced offense featured five players in double figures—Feldman (14), Knudson (13), Henderson (12),
Jocelyn Goldstein (11) and Williamson (10)—marking the first time since last season's game against Randolph-Macon that five Jays hit double digits. On the defensive end, nine players recorded at least one steal, led by Dunham (3), Williamson (2) and
Stephanie Theodossakos (2). Hopkins converted those takeaways into a 39-6 advantage in points off turnovers.
The Blue Jays returns to action on Saturday, November 8, to face Wartburg at 4:00 p.m. in the finale of the Wartburg Tip-Off Tournament.
