BALTIMORE — The Johns Hopkins University women's basketball team is preparing to host the first and second rounds of the NCAA tournament after finishing the regular season with a 25-1 record.
WATCH: Johns Hopkins women's basketball set to host NCAA tournament rounds
The Blue Jays enter the postseason earning an at-large bid, and players say the home-court advantage is a welcome boost heading into the tournament.
"I think it gives you an upper hand. Obviously, we have our student section that'll be here. My family can come out, all our families will be here, which is really nice. I also think that just being knowing that we're top seed, it gives us a certain pride to play on our court," said senior Grace Soltes.
"It's exciting to be here in our home gym where we're usually pretty successful and have our home fans, all the other student athletes can come out and support," said head coach Rodney Rogan.
Johns Hopkins is coming off a loss in the Centennial Conference Finals against Gettysburg — the fifth consecutive championship game the Blue Jays have lost to the Bullets.
"That was one of our main goals for the season was to win conference. That was our first loss, so it was definitely heartbreaking. It definitely gave us a new life once we got our selection show yesterday. I know we're still hosting. We didn't know how that was going to go with our loss. Now we're ranked 5 with NPI," said Soltes.
Senior Grace Soltes, part of the winningest senior group in program history, said she and her teammates have moved on from the conference loss and are focused on making a deep tournament run to close out their collegiate careers.
"Making it to the Sweet 16 the past two years was a huge feat for us when we beat CNU sophomore year and upsetting them on their court. It was awesome just being able to get to the games that have a title, the Elite Eight. Obviously would be extending farther than I have this year. So hopefully we'll be able to make it there, and Final Four just be amazing. I mean, it's such a special experience to make it there. So that's definitely our goal to make it to at least Final Four and national championship," Soltes said.
The Blue Jays open tournament play Friday against Hunter at 7:30. Rogan said his team is ready.
"We know what the recipe is for us to be successful, so just getting back, being confident with what we do, and playing our game. They bounce back. They're resilient, they love each other, and they work hard. So while you know you had that disappointment, it's a new day for us to work one game at a time," Rogan said.
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