In addition to sweeping the regular-season series from Notre Dame Prep on Friday evening with a 44-35 victory on the Blazers' senior night, No. 13 John Carroll snapped the defending Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland B Conference champions' 11-game winning streak and handed them a home loss for the first time since December of 2009.
Moreover, the Patriots maintained a 16-game unbeaten streak of their own with a lock-down defensive effort that frustrated the rival that topped them in the 2011 conference final.
If that's not enough, the triumph sewed up the top seed for John Carroll (18-3, 11-0 league) in the Red Division for the upcoming IAAM B Conference playoffs and stopped Notre Dame Prep (15-4, 10-2) from forging a tie in the divisional race.
"This was our seventh game in 12 days," John Carroll coach Mike Blizzard said. "The kids were tired. I told them 'pour it on for 32 minutes — you have all weekend to rest.'"
Blizzard said he employed a man-to-man defense in the first half and then, in a concession to the Blazers' 94-foot floor, went into a 2-3 zone after the intermission that forced a slew of missed shots from the perimeter.
"They packed it in and put good defensive pressure on our shooters," Notre Dame Prep coach Katie Marks said. "And when we did have open shots, we were off."
John Carroll senior point guard Maria Edwards said that much of her team's defensive focus was on her counterpart, Sydney Tommins, a junior playmaker whose deft ballhandling and passing skills normally make the Blazers go.
"We tried to force Sydney to her left a little bit," Edwards said. "We tried to make her do things that make her uncomfortable."
Deadlocked, 19-19, the Patriots took the lead for good early in the third quarter on a drive through the paint by senior forward Miranda Ripken, who also nailed a baseline jumper later in the period to keep their advantage intact.
She and her teammates were good enough in Blizzard's read-and-react offensive sets to eventually build a 12-point margin after sophomore guard Yemaya Johnson scored six points late in the final quarter.
The hosts ultimately halved the deficit on a three-pointer by senior Becky Felmeister with 52 seconds to go, but could get no closer.
"We lost to them last year in the finals," Edwards said. "And we don't ever want to feel that again."
Scoring summary
JC (44) – Watson 2, Edwards 7, Reese 3, Johnson 15, Hunter 4, Ripken 13. Totals: 16 11-16 44
ND (35) – Bracken 1, Kasun 3, Hartman 5, Healy 10, Felmeister 5, Milching 1, Tommins 10. Totals: 12 8-11 35
Half: 19-19