PAINESVILLE, OHIO - Off to the best start in
its brief history, the Lake Erie College football team looks to
move over the .500 mark for the first time this week when it
travels to Adrian College for a 6:30 p.m. kickoff under the lights
on homecoming at the Multi-Sport Performance Stadium in Adrian,
Mich., Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009. The game is the final of a
three-game stretch on the road for the Storm, which has split the
first two contests.
Behind a record running attack and a dominant second-half
defensive performance, the Storm (2-2) shutout Saint Joseph's
College (Ind.) over the final 38 minutes to overcome a 21-7 deficit
in a 31-21 victory on the road Saturday. Adrian (2-1)
meanwhile blew out Bluffton University on the road,
41-7.
THE SERIES: This is the second meeting between
the two schools and the first at Adrian. Adrian won the first
meeting last year in Painesville, 37-17.
THE BROADCAST: The game will be carried live on
Star 97.1 (WREO FM)
and streamed online at www.espn970wfun.com as part of
the Lake Erie Football Network with Craig Deas (play-by-play)
calling the action.
THE COACHES: Mark McNellie
(Baldwin-Wallace '88) is in his third season at Lake Erie, guiding
the program since its inception as a club sport in 2007, and has
posted a career varsity record of 5-10 (12-12 overall). Prior
to being named head coach at Lake Erie on Aug. 9, 2006, McNellie
was an assistant coach at Mercyhurst College for 17
years.
Jim Lyall (Michigan '74) is in
his 20th season coaching the NCAA Division III Bulldogs. The
school's all-time winningest coach is 94-88-1 in his
career.
LAST TIME OUT FOR LAKE ERIE: The Storm defense
shut out Saint Joseph's for the final 38 minutes and the offense
churned out a school-record 267 yards rushing in Lake Erie's 31-21
victory last Saturday. Down 21-7, sophomore Steve Bensinger
(Poland, Ohio/South Range) started the comeback with a 60-yard punt
return for a touchdown- the first in school history - and senior
Tony Howard (Garfield Heights, Ohio/Garfield Heights/Kent State)
scored twice and had a team-high 94 yards. Sophomore linebacker Gus
Armbruster (North Royalton, Ohio/North Royalton) tied a school
record with 18 total tackles, including 11 solo, to lead a defense
that held the Pumas to just 112 yards of offense in the second
half.
LAST TIME OUT FOR ADRIAN: Adrian racked up 457
yards on offense and scored 34 straight points to open the game in
a 41-7 rout of Bluffton University on the road last Saturday. It
was the Bulldogs' second straight win. Myke Johnson rushed for 62
yards and two of the Bulldogs' four rushing touchdowns while
Mike McGee threw for 159 yards and another score. The Adrian
defense held the Beavers to just 145 total yards and recorded five
takeaways. Jared Kwiatkowski led the way with six tackles,
including 2.5 for losses and a sack.
UP NEXT: Lake Erie hits the home field for the
first time since week two next Saturday, Oct. 3, against future
GLIAC foe Ohio Dominican University at 1 p.m. It is also
Homecoming/Alumni Weekend at Lake Erie.
