Painesville, Ohio - The Lake Erie College football team turned in a commanding performance in a 35-7 win over the visiting Saint Anselm University Hawks on Saturday afternoon at Jack Britt Stadium.
Lake Erie set the tone right from the onset with touchdowns on its first two drives and never looked back, securing its first week-one win since 2021.
Quarterback
Hunter Newell was efficient, completing 16 of 25 passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns. The Storm also boasted a dynamic one-two punch out of the backfield, as
Hakeem Quran (58) and
Julian Means-Flewellen (57) combined for 115 yards on the ground while each scoring a touchdown. Redshirt junior
Tyleik Maxwell had a career day receiving, snagging seven passes for 125 yards and a touchdown.
The Storm couldn't have asked for a better start as they marched right down the field, going 75 yards on 16 plays and taking 8:13 off the clock before Newell connected with senior tight end
Devin Morgan on a 4-yard pass over the middle.
The LEC defense got the ball right back to the offense when
Emmanuel Anyiakak forced a fumble that
Jalen Joyce recovered. Two plays later, the Storm found paydirt once again as Means-Flewellen swept around the right side and into the end zone from seven yards out.
Lake Erie would carry a 21-0 lead into the half, scoring at the midway point of the second quarter as Maxwell took a short pass along the near side and raced through the Hawks' defense for a 50-yard touchdown.
The Storm defense would get into the scoring act in the third quarter when Boston College transfer
Jason Hewlett stepped in front of a Nick Caro pass and returned it 72 yards for a touchdown. The Storm opened the quarter with what was nearly another pick-six, but a block in the back on
Michael Miles' interception return negated the score.
After Saint Anselm got on the board late in the third quarter on a 15-yard touchdown catch by Dylan Reed, the Storm wasted no time getting those points back. Taking advantage of a short field following a turnover on downs, Quran capped a six-play, 39-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown plunge to put a stamp on the victory.
The Storm defense held the Hawks to 215 total yards and 2-of-11 on third down to go along with three takeaways and two sacks. Co-captain
Kemari Ward led the way with nine tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and a sack.
Lake Erie will hit the road next Saturday for a 4 p.m. kickoff at Wheeling.
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