Box Score One play could have decided the game between John Carroll and Otterbein but it was actually two plays that paved the way for Blue Streaks to escape Westerville, Ohio, with a 14-7 win over the Cardinals.

Junior quarterback Jake Floriea lined up in shotgun formation from the Otterbein 34-yard line facing a 4th down and 10 with 4:39 left on the clock. Leading by only one touchdown, a first down likely secured a victory and no conversion could have potentially cost them the win.

"Today, field possession wasn't in our favor. You looked at the field possession and what we needed to do, I think that play was about being stuck in a field position game," head coach Rick Finotti said of the play call. "You can't punt in that situation and you're still far away from field goal. I trust our playmakers and I trust our offense to make that play."

Floriea dropped back and looked for sophomore receiver Keyshawn Colmon and the pass was incomplete. After all, this play didn't result as a mark in the loss column and the last time Floriea targeted Colmon, it turned out much better.

As the third quarter neared the end, the game was locked at seven points apiece and both offenses traded continuous scoreless possessions. That was before Floriea capped off an eight-play, 94-yard drive with a 33-yard touchdown pass to Colmon to put the Blue and Gold ahead 14-7.

"Well, we work on that route every single day in practice. The corner bit down and I finally got over the top. Jake got it to me," Colmon said when describing the play. "I found the end zone and scored. It felt good."

Two consecutive three-and-out drives by the Blue Streaks offense in the fourth quarter kept Otterbein hanging around but it was the JCU defense that secured the win.

Senior preseason All-American Chad Stalnaker put his bid for the same recognition at the season's end with a stellar fourth quarter performance.

The anchor of the defense, Stalnaker, kept the Blue Streaks afloat before the ship sunk. He came up with four of his game-leading 12 tackles in the final 12 minutes of the game.

"Our defense needed to step up with the game on the line and we did just that," said Stalnaker. "Otterbein was a great team, and they were able to stay in the game up until the end.

"Our mentality on defense, especially in the second half, was to do whatever we had to do to win the game. There was no scheme or play that was going to win us the game. It had to come down our toughness, grit, and ability to perform in the fourth quarter."

On Otterbein's final offensive possession, the Blue Streaks navigated to safe waters with a three-and-out to put the ball back in the hands of the JCU offense.

From there, they coasted the clock over the next 4:29 to dock the victory.

It took awhile for the Blue Streaks to find a rhythm on offense. After 19 minutes of scoreless play, sophomore running back Mike Canganelli broke through the line of scrimmage for a four-yard touchdown. That gave JCU the initial lead.

Just before halftime, Otterbein quarterback Luke Schmeling used his feet to dart through a well-blocked play for a 14-yard score. That play tied the game but the Cardinals special teams assisted in a Blue and Gold win.

Every other Otterbein offensive possession ended in a punt or missed field goal. Second team All-OAC punter Luke Green-Lauber earned his recognition with nine punts, four of them pinned inside the 20. On the flip side, kicker Nate Strong missed field goals from 47 and 43 yards out.

The Blue Streaks outpaced the Otterbein offense with 280 total yards in the win. Freshman receiver Joey Torok had 106 of those yards on four catches.

"I am just trusting my teammates. I am doing what I am supposed to do," Torok said. "Everyone's doing their job as a collective group and we are playing as hard as we can."

"He has been really important," said Finotti. "You have to give a lot of credit to the other guys too. You love to see guys support each other and succeed."

JCU limited Otterbein to 228 total yards on offense.

The Blue Streaks will face No.3 Mount Union next week in University Heights.