It has been just shy of one full decade since a John Carroll men's soccer team has started a season 3-0.

The long drought ended Friday night, as an attacking Blue Streaks side wore down the visiting Penn State Behrend Lions by a 3-1 score at Don Shula Stadium.

It was the visitors who struck first, as a well-timed thru ball from Nick McKee found Matt Dziadosz running by the last line of JCU defenders. Dziadosz beat Liam McIntosh in a one-on-one situation with a well struck ball to the left side. The reigning OAC Player of the Week got a slight piece of the shot, but not enough to stop the first goal of the season by a John Carroll opponent.

It was the second consecutive year that Dziadosz had scored against JCU, as he had the game winner in last year's 1-0 win in Erie, Pennsylvania.

The Blue Streaks shook off the early stunner and got the equalizer in the 17th minute. A Brian Lutz corner found Eric Roszits in the pack, who headed home his first goal of 2017 and his first since October 3, 2015 against Ohio Northern.

The score stood 1-1 at the break with JCU holding a 9-2 advantage in shots.

An unrelenting attack continued in the second period, but it was not until a Lions player picked up his second yellow halfway through the stanza that the scales truly tipped. Down a man the rest of the way and already being outshot by double digits, Penn State Behrend was facing an even greater uphill battle.

The breaking point came in the 83rd minute, when a foul in the box put Jesse Marinaro into a penalty kick situation. Although All-American keeper Chris Ralph guessed right, Marinaro's kick was perfectly placed for the go-ahead goal.

JCU capped off the victory when Hayden Parente finished off a combo pass from Jake Girardot and Marinaro to give the Blue Streaks a 3-1 lead with 78 ticks left in regulation.

McIntosh made one save -- a great one at that off a header in the 68th minute -- to record his third win of the year.

John Carroll won the battle of shots, 19-5.

Now that the 3-0 hurdle has been cleared ... It has been 15 years since the Blue Streaks began a season 4-0. That year the Blue Streaks finished 17-5 and reached the 3rd round of the NCAA tournament. John Carroll will get that chance Sunday in Buffalo when it takes on medaille at 4:00 p.m.