Painesville, Ohio — The Lake Erie College football team battled Hillsdale College through three quarters Saturday afternoon before the Chargers used a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns to pull away for a 29-9 Great Midwest Athletic Conference victory at Jack Britt Memorial Stadium.
The Storm (2-3, 0-3 G-MAC) took an early lead and held Hillsdale to just 15 points through the first half, but the Chargers scored 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to secure the win.
Lake Erie got on the scoreboard first after a 60-yard completion from quarterback
Hunter Newell to
Dalen Stovall helped set up a four-yard touchdown run by Newell with 5:44 remaining in the opening quarter. The Storm led 6-2 following the score.
Hillsdale responded with a pair of safeties in the first half, the second coming with 8:22 left in the second quarter when Newell was sacked in the end zone. The Chargers then took the lead when quarterback Eli Boyce scored on a 13-yard run, followed by a successful two-point conversion.
The Storm answered with a 23-yard field goal from
Josh Valero late in the second quarter to cut the deficit to 12-9. Hillsdale added a 26-yard field goal from Dylan DeDario with 32 seconds remaining in the half to take a 15-9 advantage into the break.
Neither team scored during a defensive third quarter, with the Storm forcing Hillsdale to punt three times during the period. Lake Erie also forced a fourth-down stop in the second quarter when Hillsdale's Colin McKernan was unable to connect on a fourth-down pass from the Storm three-yard line.
Hillsdale finally broke through early in the fourth quarter, marching 60 yards on 10 plays before Shea Ruddy scored on a six-yard touchdown run with 12:17 remaining. The Chargers added another touchdown on their next possession, with Boyce finding the end zone from 10 yards out to make it 29-9 with 5:33 to play.
Newell completed 6-of-11 passes for 102 yards and added 15 rushing yards and a touchdown. Stovall led the Storm receiving corps with four catches for 77 yards, including the 60-yard reception that set up Lake Erie's first touchdown.
On the ground,
Hakeem Quran paced the Storm with 42 yards on 10 carries, while
Julian Means-Flewellen added 34 yards on nine attempts. William Allen Batton contributed a 27-yard rush on a fake punt.
Defensively, Lake Erie held Hillsdale to 116 rushing yards and recorded four sacks, as
Kemari Ward and
Quinterrius Jemison each had two.
The Storm return to action next Saturday, Oct. 10, at Kentucky Wesleyan in Owensboro, Kentucky. LLake Erie College
