John Carroll defense leads way as Blue Streaks win at Ohio Northern
Oct. 15—Three first-quarter fumbles by Ohio Northern and recoveries by the John Carroll defense led to short fields and the Blue Streaks took advantage in a 24-7 win Oct. 15 in Ada.
JCU (5-1) has won five games in a row in Ohio Athletic Conference play and is tied atop the conference with 6-0 Mount Union. It's the Blue Streaks' first 5-0 start in the OAC since 2016, when it won the conference outright.
Kirtland grads Joey Torok — a senior wide receiver — and sophomore running back Mason Sullivan scored first-half touchdowns that staked the visitors to a 17-7 lead.
Torok's TD came in the first quarter on a 10-yard pass from quarterback Joe Collins, and was set up after Ohio Northern muffed a fumble. The Blue Streaks took advantage and needed to drive just 14 yards to pay dirt.
In the second quarter, JCU increased its lead to 14-0 when Sullivan finished off a 69-yard drive with a 4-yard TD run.
A Yanni Volas 36-yard field goal in the second quarter made it 17-0 and the game looked like it might be a rout but the Polar Bears didn't fold.
ONU (1-5, 1-4 OAC) used a 75-yard drive that lasted nearly 8 minutes and scored a TD on an Adan Figueroa 1-yard run to make it 17-7 just before halftime.
JCU came into the game leading OAC in rushing yards per game at 209 but found running lanes difficult to find with 64 yards in the first two quarters. It was more difficult in the second half as the Blue Streaks managed just 24 more in the last two quarters.
Blue Streaks running backs Evan McVay rushed for 46 yards on 15 carries and Demerius Goodwin 42 on 16 attempts.
The struggles to run the ball didn't matter because JCU's defense came to play on this afternoon.
The unit got two more turnovers in the second half — another fumble recovery and an interception by Justin Renner of West Geauga.
Ohio Northern was held to 195 yards of offense. JCU defensive end Bricker Thiel led the way with seven tackles and three for loss.
Sullivan scored a second touchdown in the third quarter to extend JCU's lead to 24-7.
Collins was 20 of 31 passing for 181 yards and a TD. Torok had a team-high seven receptions for 57 yards and teammate Brennan Fugh four catches for 61 yards.
JCU hosts Capital Oct. 22. Kickoff is 1:30 p.m.
