BETHANY, Okla. –  East Central opened fast, finished strong, and played well in all parts between defeating Southern Nazarene 44-21 in a football game Saturday in Bethany.

The victory was the first of the season for the Tigers (1-2) and their fourth straight against the Crimson Storm. SNU is 0-3 and has lost 12 of its last 13.

First-year ECU Head Coach Kris McCullough knew his team was better than they showed in earlier losses to Harding and Arkansas Tech and today the Tigers offered a glimpse of just how good they can be in 2022.

"The hardest thing in football is to win, and today we did that. Our guys made plays when their number was called. The offense bounced back in a big way," McCullough said.

ECU had a season-best 471 yards of total offense equally balanced between passing (254) and rushing (217). The Tigers had five players score with Nemier Herod twice finding the end zone on runs of 1 and four yards.

Kenny Hrncir was sharp totaling 247 yards and two touchdowns, including a strange four-yard score when he caught a batted ball by an SNU defender and scooted four yards for the surprising touchdown. Hrncir's pass to himself put the game away for the Tigers, who led the entire way. Hrncir's score came after an 11-play, 92-yard drive with the touchdown putting ECU up 35-14 with 1:44 remaining in the third quarter.

Miles Davis and La'Quan Wells put the Tigers in front early with a pair of touchdowns in the opening quarter. Wells scored from 19 yards out on ECU's opening drive and Davis added a 22-yard score putting ECU in front 14-0 with 2:08 in the first.

The Tiger defense came away with three turnovers, including a 43-yard interception return by Jalen Baldwin that led to ECU's final score a 46-yard field goal by Oscar Simon in the closing seconds.

Molinsky Desire made big plays forcing an SNU fumble while Cameron Jones and Yemi Oyesanya each had recoveries. Cody Alexander led the Tigers with seven tackles while Devon Roush and Orlando Brown each had six.

"Our defense played tough. We found a way to get stops when we needed," McCullough said. "We still haven't put it all together with the offense, defense, and special teams, but I'm proud of our team. We are much closer. Our team will celebrate this win and come back and work hard on Northwestern Oklahoma State for next week."