By DREW GRANTHUM/Sports Editor

After watching its 15-games win streak snapped on Sept. 5, the Evangel Lightning set out to start a new one, taking on Ezekiel Academy on Sept. 12. The matchup was all Lightning, as the home team cruised to a 45-10 win.

The Lightning first got on the board at the 7:35 mark in the first quarter when Mason Murphy broke a 24-yard run for a touchdown to cap off a 70-yard, nine-play drive. The point after was no good, and the Lightning held a 6-0 lead.

A little more than a minute later, the Lightning scored again when John Will Graham returned an interception 15 yards for a touchdown. The conversion attempt was no good, and the Lightning led 12-0 with 6:04 left in the first quarter. The defense scored again when Mason Murphy returned a pick for 65 yards and a score. The conversion attempt came up short, and with 2:27 left in the first, Lightning led 18-0.

Brad Baggett recorded the next score when he took a 3-yard run in for a score to wrap up a six play drive that spanned 20 yards. The conversion attempt was no good, and at the end of the quarter, Evangel led 24-0.

Micah Murphy registered the next score, coming on a 1-yard run with 8:27 left in the second quarter, and Murphy also got the Evangel passing game going when he hit Tyler Byrd for a 30-yard strike to put the Lightning up 37-0 after Murphy hit the PAT.

Ezekiel’s Sefton Wheeler hit a field goal to make it 37-3, but Akil Corbin’s 45-yard run added another Evangel score. Phillip Flanders added a two-point conversion to make it 45-3 in favor of the Lightning with 6:28 left in the third.

Ezekiel managed to toss a 52-yard pass in the fourth quarter to make it 45-10, but it was a case of too little, too late as the Lightning ran out the clock for the win.

Mason Murphy led the way on the ground, going for 72 yards on seven attempts and a touchdown, while John Will Graham and Murphy each had a pick six. Andrew Collins had four solo tackles and a fumble recovery in the win, as ECS looks to continue its new streak against Central Christian Sept. 19.