John Carroll advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division III playoffs with a 27-7 victory against Hobart at Boswell Field this afternoon. The 11th-ranked Blue Streaks overcame extremely muddy conditions to scored 27 unanswered points and improve to 10-1 on the season. The Statesmen end the year at 8-2. 

On the game's opening drive and facing third-and-11, John Carroll quarterback Tom Arth fumbled and Hobart junior linebacker David Szentesy pounced on the loose ball at the JCU 26. Three plays later junior quarterback Craig Swanson threw a 20-yard strike to sophomore wide receiver Rick Pinero for his 32nd career touchdown pass, breaking the previous record held by Greg Helmer '97. 

The Blue Streaks second possession lost 14 yards in three plays, and JCU's punt gave the Statesmen the ball near midfield. Hobart ran the ball on the first five plays, gaining 42 yards to move to the Blue Streaks' 7-yard line. A 6-yard Swanson to senior tight end Ryan Adams gave the Statesmen second down and goal from the 1. 

Sophomore running back Ty Godinho, who finished 107 yards rushing, was stopped for no gain on two straight plays. After a timeout, the coaching staff opted to hand the ball off to sophomore offense guard Alex Bell. The sloppy conditions and defensive penetration caused the ball to pop out on the handoff and senior defensive back Liam Stull picked it up and raced 97 yards untouched to tie the game. The Hobart offense never got inside the red zone again. 

The Blue Streaks took the lead for good at the 14:03 mark of the second quarter on a 75-yard pass play from Arth to senior wide receiver Adam Therrien. Therrien finished the afternoon with four receptions, including three touchdowns, for 146 yards. 

Defensively, John Carroll sacked Swanson nine times, including two each by senior defensive tackle Joe Indriolo and sophomore defensive end McPat Coyne. Senior linebacker Chris Cubero led JCU with nine tackles. Senior linebacker Matt Daley paced Hobart with six tackles, while senior linebacker Tim Booth added five stops, including three for a loss, and a recovered fumble. 

The Blue Streaks advance to the second round where they'll face Muhlenberg, a 55-6 winner over UMass-Dartmouth. Game time and location will be announced on Monday.