Box Score Coming off a long and winding road comprised of seven consecutive matches away from the friendly confines of Shula Stadium, the John Carroll University Blue Streaks came back to their home field and ran past the Wilmington College Quakers in a 3-1 victory.

Box Score

This win is the Blue Streaks' eighth in a row over the Quakers, but the first of the eight by more than a single-goal margin.

It was a physical match-up for the entirety of the 90 minutes, as four yellow cards were thrown into the mix of 23 fouls between the two teams.

John Carroll was determined to strike early and build a lead with which it could maintain an aggressive level of play. The Blue Streaks' first goal was completed by Ben Vietmier, with an assist by Liam Switalski and Kevin McKamish. The two made an opening for Vietmeier, who gracefully kicked the thru ball into the goal with his heel, giving him his first goal of the 2011 season.

“Our team was working on finishing during practices and it seemed to have shown on the field," said Head Coach Hector Marinaro. "It is great to have our first home win. As a coach, I can't really ask for much more.”

McKamish finished the first half with the second goal assisted by Brian Potocnik, putting the Blue Streaks up 2-0 at halftime. Potocnik turned a Quaker miscue into a scoring opportunity when he fed a perfect pass up field to a sprinting McKamish, who reached the ball before the Quaker keeper and punched a shot that slid to the far post. 

Taylor Estes retaliated by dishing the ball to Erik Hammar, who gave the Quakers their only goal of the game.  It also cut the JCU lead in half in the 59th minute.

Jon Smola responded by obtaining his first goal of the season, as well, breaking away in the 68th minute to put the match out of reach. 

“This was the best birthday present one could ask for," said Smola, who turns 21 at midnight.

With its fourth consecutive win, John Carroll improves its record to 7-5-0 and its conference mark remains perfect at 3-0, which leaves the Blue Streaks tied for first with Baldwin-Wallace. Wilmington had its three-match win streak snapped, and falls to 7-4-1 overall and 1-2 in league action.