Dustin Beurer Gets First Win As Football Trounces Lake Erie 68-14

OVERVIEW – LAKE ERIE

SCORE: Northwood Timberwolves 68, Lake Erie Storm 14
RECORDS: Northwood (1-3, 1-1 G-MAC), Lake Erie (1-3, 0-2 G-MAC)
LOCATION: Hantz Field – Midland, Mich.
RECAP: Northwood football picks up first G-MAC win in dominating 68-14 win over Lake Erie at home Saturday (September 23), giving head coach Dustin Beurer his first victory as a Timberwolf.

INSIDE THE GAME

• Lake Erie's offense wasted no time, throwing long on their first snap and connecting on a 75-yard pass, setting up Lake Erie on the Northwood five-yard line. Two plays later, the Storm found the endzone to go up 7-0.
• The Timberwolves responded just as efficiently on the following drive. Jacob Barlage connected with Andy Durand, who found a gap in the defense to complete the 65-yard touchdown. The extra point attempt from Max Gonos was good, evening the score at 7-7 with 13:24 remaining in the first quarter.
• The strong offense continued for both teams in the first quarter as the Storm put together a 17-play, 81-yard drive. An eight-yard TD made the score 14-7 Lake Erie.
• The Northwood offense began their drive on their own 46-yard line thanks to a 25-yard return from Brendan Teal. Sebastian Toland powered through the Lake Erie defense, staying on his feet for the 11-yard rushing touchdown to tie the game 14-14.
• The first stop of the contest came from the Northwood defense, stopping Lake Erie on 4th and 1 to regain possession on the Lake Erie 46-yard line.
• Northwood took its first lead of the day midway through the second quarter Toland's untouched four-yard rushing touchdown, giving Northwood the 21-14 lead with 5:55 remaining in the half.
• Following a stop from the Northwood defense, a high snap on the Lake Erie punt attempt resulted in a safety, extending the score to 23-14.
• The Timberwolves remained hot in the second quarter, driving 70 yards in six plays before Cashual Goldsmith's one-yard rush made the score 30-14.
• Under one minute later, Northwood found themselves on the Lake Erie 46-yard line. Barlage connected on a deep pass to a wide-open Bryan Kinley, who added a touchdown of his own to put the score at 36-14 with 1:11 remaining in the opening half.
• The Timberwolves were not done there. The defense forced a Lake Erie fumble, which was recovered by Duwayne Legette. Gonos connected on a 34-yard field goal as time expired, giving Northwood the 40-14 lead going into half after scoring 26 unanswered points.
• Northwood picked up right where they left off after the break. Barlage found Teal for a 32-yard touchdown to capitalize on a five-play, 67-yard drive as Northwood pushed their point total to 47.
• The ensuing Lake Erie drive was just two plays and seven yards before Cole Simpson came up with an interception. Jake Kelbert and the NU offense traveled 50 yards on eight plays. Kelbert's 12-yard rush made the score 54-14 with 9:43 to go in the third quarter.
• With 6:02 remaining in the third quarter, Kelbert's completion to Dawson Leffner for 38 yards gave Northwood the 47-point advantage with a score of 61-14.
• Northwood's dominating performance continued as Kelbert found Toland for a 25-yard touchdown, his third of the contest. This extended the Northwood scoring streak to 53 unanswered points as NU made the score 68-14, which proved to be the final.

GAME STATS

• FIRST DOWNS: Northwood 27, Lake Erie 11
• RUSHES-YARDS: Northwood 41-227, Lake Erie 37-78
• PASSING YARDS: Northwood 365 (20-29-0), Lake Erie 176 (17-32-1)
• TOTAL OFFENSE, PLAYS-YARDS: Northwood 70-592, Lake Erie 69-254
• TIME OF POSSESSION: Northwood 27:21, Lake Erie 32:39

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

• Toland: 44 receiving yards, 35 rushing yards, 3 TD
• Barlage: 13-19, 288 yards, 3 TD
• Kelbert: 4-7, 71 passing yards, 53 rushing yards, 3 TD
• Teal: Three receptions, 56 yards
• Kinley: Two receptions, 54 receiving yards, TD
• Durand: Two receptions, 66 receiving yards, TD
• Leffner: One reception, 38 receiving yards, TD
• Simpson: INT
• Goldsmith: 36 rushing yards, TD
• Ethan Bunch: One reception, 46 receiving yards

NORTHWOOD NOTES

• After gaining 211 yards of offense in the first quarter, Lake Erie gained just 43 yards on 40 plays over the final three quarters.
• The win is the first for head coach Dustin Beurer at Northwood. He went 29-5 as head coach at Albion prior to his arrival in Midland.
• Northwood's 68 points are the most for the program since November 5, 2005 when the Timberwolves put up 70 in a victory over Northern Michigan.

UP NEXT

• The Timberwolves will travel to Hillsdale on Saturday (September 30). Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.