Box Score In a flash, it was over.

John Carroll had just scored a goal to cut the lead held by the #2 ranked team in the nation, Rochester Institute of Technology, down to 5-3 early in the second quarter of an NCAA Division III Championship first round game.

It was at that juncture that RIT went to another gear as the Tigers closed out the period with 13 unasnwered goals to take an 18-3 halftime lead.

Another 11 RIT goals in the second half to just three by the Blue Streaks made the final score 29-6 -- an unfitting end to what had been a season of great strides and accomplishments by the John Carroll program. 

The 29 goals are the most scored in an NCAA Division III playoff game since 2001 when Middlebury beat Endicott, 29-3, in a first round game.

On paper, it was a tough draw to begin with for John Carroll. The Blue Streaks were a third year program with just one senior making its first playoff appearance with a first year coach on the road against the #2 ranked team in the nation. RIT, on the other hand, played in the Division III championship game in 2013 when this year's 11-member senior class were freshman and John Carroll was still operating a club team. The Tigers came into this game with a 17-1 this season, and owned an impressive 93-9 (.912 winning percentage) record over the last five seasons.

Yet for all that, JCU managed to hang around for the opening 17 minutes. 

John Carroll fell behind quickly 3-0 but managed gto bounce back when Declan O'Grady and Collin Rice each managed goals to pull the Blue Streaks to within 3-2 with just under five minutes left in the initial frame. RIT responded with two goals off 50/50 balls in transition and took a 5-2 lead after 15 minutes of play.

O'Grady struck again at the 14:05 mark of the second period, and the pesky Blue Streaks were still in the mix trailing 5-3.

RIT began to pull away slowly, and entering the final five minutes of the half, the Tigers had built the lead to 9-3. But it would be those final five minutes of the quarter where things completely unravelled for the Blue Streaks. RIT stepped on the gas and poured in nine goals over a span of the final 4:51 and the issue was never in doubt after that.

Gary Anile, Logan Calhoun and Michael Hubert all scored third quarter goals but it would not stop the onslaught from the prolific RIT offense. 

For the Blue Streaks, it was a difficult afternoon in possessing the ball as RIT won 30 of a possible 38 faceoffs and amassed 55 ground balls to just 24 for the Blue Streaks. As a result, the Tigers won the shots battle, 50-23.

Jacob Betz, who played the entire second half, led JCU with five saves. O'Grady had two goals and Rice had two assists to pace the offense.

John Carroll ends its season with a record of 12-6.