As it stands now, the Ohio Athletic Conference race has split into five teams in the running for four playoff spots, and five teams below .500 playing for their playoff lives.

John Carroll remained in the upper half and in the playoff hunt thanks to an important road split at Otterbein Saturday. Otterbein is one of the other five teams above .500 in league play.

In the opening game, JCU rolled out to a 10-1 lead and held on for a 13-8 victory. In the nightcap, a late collapse prevented a potential sweep as the Cardinals scored five of their six runs in the final three innings for a 6-3 win.

In one of the more bizarre games played this season, John Carroll began game one with power from an unlikley source as Mikki Vance hit her first career home run with a two-run blast in the second inning for a 2-0 lead.

Otterbein cut the lead to 2-1 with a single tally in the fifth, and it appeared the pitching duel would continue.

That would not be the case.

The Blue Streaks erupted for an eight-run top of the sixth, fuelded by three home runs. Alyssa Coleman hit two of them in the same inning -- one a solo shot to lead off, another a three-run blast to give JCU a 10-1 lead. Those two home runs surrounded a grand slam authored by Ashlee Unrue in the middle of the inning.

All JCU needed was three outs to end the game early via the eight run "mercy rule"

John Carroll gor the three outs ... but not before the home squad answered with a seven-run frame in the bottom of the sixth. With one on and one out, five consecutiev Cardinals reached base to cut the JCU lead to 10-6. With two outs, Otterbein got another big boost on a two-run homer to cut its deficit to 10-8.

That would be all, however, and JCU padded its lead with three more runs in the top of the seventh to ice the victory.

Rachel Byrnes survived the strange sixth inning to collect her ninth win of the year and move into a tie for second place all-time (with Kristin Platz) with her 42 career win.

Hitting stars were everywhere, as Unrue finished with seven RBI and Coleman was 3-4 with four RBI. Vance was 2-3 with three runs scored and Christie Wade was 2-4 with two runs scored. In all, JCU scored 13 runs on 11 hits.

The nightcap was not as adventurous and not as fruitful for the Blue Streaks. 

John Carroll opened up a 2-0 lead ater Carly Simecek had an RBI double in the first inning and Gina Giangreco had an RBI single in the second.

The visiotrs still led 3-1 after Ashlee Unrue's sacrifice fly in the fourth, but Otterbein rallied. With the score tied 3-3 in the bottom fot he sixth, the Cardinals finally took their first lead of the day when they scored three times -- all unearned -- off starter Ann Marie Kirchner. The last two runs were scored with two out.

Coleman continued her torrid day by going 3-3 and scoring a run. Coleman, Wade (2-3) and Giangreco (2-3) accounted for seven of John Carroll's eight hits.

John Carroll is now 15-9 overall and 6-4 in the OAC, which leaves them currently in sole possession of third place by percentage points (.600) over Ohio Northern and Otterbein, who are both 7-5 (.583).