Alliance, OH- Mount Union continues its regular season dominance, taking down John Carroll 37-31 behind an explosive run game led by Tyler Echeverry and Noah Beaudrie.

John Carroll took the opening kick and began the game on their own 25. After an immediate first-down completion to Tyler Mintz from Nick Semtimphelter, the Blue Streaks stalled and punted on fourth down. The Purple Raiders began their day on offense with Echeverry gaining six yards. Chunk yardage quickly became the name of the game as Beaudrie found Jerry Cooper for a nine-yard gain on the ensuing play. Beaudrie then connected with Tyrell Sanders for a 26-yard gain. After a few plays with medium gains, UMU opened the scoring courtesy of a 12-yard receiving touchdown from Cooper. Ivan Maric’s extra point gave Mount Union the early 7-0 lead. Septimpheter wasted no time answering back as he found Mintz for a 62-yard completion. A few plays later, Evan McVay caught a five-yard pass from Semptimpheter, tying the game up at seven after the extra point. JCU’s defense came alive on the next drive as Dylan Crasi knocked down a pass intended for Darnell Williams and Kenny Grobolsek sacked Beaudrie for a nine-yard loss. The Blue Streaks marched down to Mount Union’s 20-yard line as the first quarter came to a close.

Semptimphelter began the second quarter with a quick 20-yard touchdown pass to Tyren Montgomery, giving JCU the lead 14-7. On the following Purple Raider drive, Garrett Sparks recovered a fumble from Cooper. This swing in momentum was short-lived as the Blue Streaks punted the ball back to UMU after four plays that resulted in four lost yards. Echeverry then re-introduced himself to the ball game as he swiftly scored from 65 yards out. However, a failed attempt kept JCU in the lead 14-13.  Compounding penalties ended John Carroll’s next drive, setting the Purple Raiders up at JCU’s 25. After losing 11 yards, Beaudrie found Nick Turner 15 yards up the field. This set Muric up for a 38-yard kick that restored Mount Union’s lead 16-14. With around three minutes left in the first half, the Blue Streaks began their final drive of the first half. In the end, Semtimphelter found Kenny Rawls for his third passing touchdown of the half. This gave the visitors a 21-16 lead with 57 seconds left in the first half. The Purple Raiders’ two-minute offense did their job as they set Muric up for a 40-yard field goal as time expired, making the score 21-19 in favor of JCU.

Mount Union came out strong in the second half as Echeverry scored his second touchdown from 51 yards out, restoring the UMU lead 25-21 after a second failed two-point conversion. After earning one first down, JCU quickly went backward as Kaleb Brown and Marcus Jackson combined to bring down Semptimphelter for a loss of 12 yards. However, the Blue Streaks forced a three-and-out on the ensuing drive. John Carroll began a methodical drive with 6:51 left on the clock in the third quarter after the UMU punt. Outside of one rush from Quincy Newsom that went for 21 yards, every other play on the drive went for 10 yards or less. At the end of the third quarter, Mount Union led 25-21.

Similar to the second quarter, it took one play for JCU to score as Semptimphelter connected with Jack Cardaman for a six-yard score. This gave the Blue Streaks back the lead 28-25 Overall, this drive went 13 plays for 79 yards. Beaudrie replied with a 53-yard scrambling touchdown. However, another missed extra point left Mount Union up 31-28. Penalties and good defense by the Purple Raiders forced a three-and-out. UMU replicated the Blue Streaks’ form as they also went three-and-out. However, roughing the kicker gave a new life to the Black and Purple. UMU ended up punting later in the drive, but this drilled more time off the clock. After another JCU drive fizzled out, UMU put the dagger in their rivals as Echeverry returned to the endzone for the third time in the game, this time from 21 yards out. With 2:07 left in regulation, Colin Schuler got John Carroll back within one possession as he made a 42-yard field goal. After a failed onside kick attempt, Mount Union faced third down and six. Beaudrie barrelled his way past the line to gain as he secured seven yards and the 37-31 victory over John Carroll.

Mount Union has another rivalry game next Saturday as they make the trip to Baldwin Wallace. John Carroll heads to University Heights for the first time this season next week as they take on Heidelberg.

Mount Union Key Players

#0 Tyler Echeverry: 13 Carries, 176 Yards, 3 TD’s

#8 Noah Beaudrie: 15-19, 214 Yards, 1 TD, 16 Carries, 93 Yards, 1 TD

#16 Nick Turner: 3 Receptions, 89 Yards

John Carroll Key Players

#2 Tyler Mintz: 7 Receptions, 99 Yards

#5 Evan McVay: 8 Receptions, 43 Yards, 1 TD, 6 Carries, 17 Yards

14 Nick Semptimphelter: 31-41, 325 Yards, 4 TD’s, 11 Carries, 16 Yards

Player of the Game: Tyler Echeverry