Box Score

UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, Ohio – The Otterbein football team was dealt a loss in its final road game of the season Saturday afternoon, falling 49-6 at nationally-ranked John Carroll inside Don Shula Stadium.

The Blue Streaks, ranked No. 20 in the latest D3football.com poll and 22nd by the American Football Coaches Association, improve to 8-1 on the season and 8-0 in Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) play to set up a showdown next week with top-ranked Mount Union for the league title.

John Carroll got on the board first, converting a critical third-and-long in Otterbein territory and then punching in a nine-yard rushing score from Ro Golphin a few plays later. The 7-0 margin remained the same until early in the second quarter, when the Blue Streaks finished off an eight-play, 53-yard drive with a six-yard touchdown pass to the back pylon from Anthony Moeglin to Marshall Howell.

The Blue Streaks pushed the gap to 21-0 minutes later, intercepting a pass from Otterbein quarterback Logan Stepp up the right sideline and then scoring on a short field. It was just the second pick thrown by Stepp all season.

The Cardinals (4-5, 4-4 OAC) got on the board later in the second quarter, hitting a long pass from Stepp to classmate Hunter Joseph down to the five-yard line before settling for a 23-yard field goal from sophomore Joe Sanfillipo.

JCU widened the deficit to 28-3 just before halftime, with defensive back Mike Hollins coming up with his second interception and the hosts turning it into more points. John Carroll finished the first half with a 251-109 edge in total yards.

The Blue Streaks opened the second-half scoring on their initial possession, busting a 58-yard touchdown from Golphin to open a 35-3 advantage and never look back. Otterbein's only other points came courtesy of a 33-yard field goal by Sanfillipo on 4th-and-1 from the John Carroll 16-yard line.

JCU finished with a 431-209 edge in total yards in a game that featured multiple unsportsmanlike-conduct penalties.

Joseph tallied a game-best 76 yards receiving while Nick Toledo and Steven Carpenter, making his return from a two-game injury absence, each made 10 tackles to lead all players.

Moeglin completed 17 of 28 passes for 218 yards and four touchdowns on the John Carroll side and Golphin had exactly 100 yards on the ground, coming on nine carries.

Otterbein will finish out the season next weekend inside Memorial Stadium, hosting Marietta College at 1:30 p.m. as part of Senior Day.