HCU dominates Northwestern State to end season with a big win

Story and photos by Robert H Kelly

Copyright 2024 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 23, 2024) The HCU Huskies finished their 2024 football season in style, beating Northwestern State Demons 62-24 on "Senior Day" at Husky Stadium. The Huskies put on a show with over 600 yards of offense, making it a game to remember for their fans.

The game started with a big play by the HCU defense. They stopped the Demons on fourth down and got the ball at the Demons’ 43-yard line. That led to a 23-yard field goal by Dillon Fedor to give HCU an early 3-0 lead. After that, the Huskies couldn’t be stopped.

Quarterback Cutter Stewart connected with AJ Wilson for a 32-yard touchdown, while Calvin Hill added a two-yard rushing score, and Darryle Evans broke free for a 47-yard touchdown run. Just like that, HCU was up 24-7 early in the second quarter.

Northwestern State tried to fight back. Quarterback JT Fayard found Zay Davis for a nine-yard touchdown pass, cutting the Huskies’ lead to 24-14 before halftime. HCU had a chance to score again, but an interception by the Demons ended the drive.

After the break, HCU came out strong. On their first drive of the third quarter, Hill broke free for a 25-yard touchdown, capping a quick 79-yard drive. D.J. Harris then picked off a pass from the Demons and returned it to the 15-yard line. Stewart took advantage, hitting Deuce McMillan for an 11-yard touchdown. The Huskies led 38-14 just three minutes into the second half.

HCU’s dominance continued. After forcing a quick three-and-out, Champ Dozier ran in a three-yard touchdown to push the lead to 45-14. Northwestern State’s Myles Kitt-Denton responded with an 87-yard kickoff return, but the Demons could only manage a field goal. On the next kickoff, Jesse Valenzuela returned the ball 98 yards for a touchdown, putting HCU up 52-17.

In the fourth quarter, Stewart found Ismael Fuller for a 36-yard touchdown, extending the lead to 59-17. The Demons scored one last time early in the quarter, but HCU sealed the win with a long, time-eating drive that ended with a 27-yard field goal by Fedor.

HCU’s 617 total yards of offense was the fourth-highest in school history, and their 332 rushing yards ranked third. Calvin Hill led the ground game with 109 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. Wilson had another big game, catching three passes for 123 yards and a touchdown, marking his fourth straight 100-yard game. Stewart finished with 296 passing yards and three touchdowns.

The Huskies’ defense was just as impressive, holding Northwestern State to only 211 yards and 10 first downs. Harris had nine tackles and his first career interception, while Joe Cadette added six tackles, a sack, and 1.5 tackles for loss.

With the win, HCU finished the season 5-7 overall and 3-4 in the Southland Conference. Northwestern State ended their season winless at 0-12.

HCU fans have a lot to be excited about as the team looks to carry this momentum into next year.

Texas A&M-Commerce tops Northwestern State, 69-64

Photo by
Darla S. Tamulitis, La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2024 All Rights Reserved

By Robert Kelly
Copyright 2024 All Rights Reserved

LAKE CHARLES,LOUISIANA (March 10, 2024) In a thrilling matchup, the seventh-seeded Texas A&M-Commerce Lions secured a historic win in the first round of the 2024 Jersey Mike's Southland Conference Men's Basketball Championship. They defeated the sixth-seeded Northwestern State Demons with a final score of 69-64.

This victory is significant for the Commerce men's program as it marks their first win in this tournament since joining the SLC last season. With a record of 13-19, the Lions now advance to the quarterfinal round to face third-seeded Nicholls, while the Demons end their season with a 9-23 record.

Leading the charge for Commerce were Kalen Williams, Kwo Agwa, and Tommie Lewis, who each scored in double figures. Williams led the team with 19 points, followed by Agwa with 16 points and Lewis with 15 points.

Despite a strong performance from NSU's Justin Wilson, who scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds, the Demons couldn't hold off the Lions' determined effort.

The game saw both teams trading leads throughout, with Commerce making a comeback in the second half. A key moment came when KC Ugwuakazi tied the game at 53-53 with a layup, followed by Khaliq Abdul-Mateen's three-pointer, giving Commerce a crucial lead.

Although the Demons regained the lead late in the game, Commerce rallied back with an 8-0 run in the final minutes, securing the victory. Agwa's clutch play, including a crucial putback, helped seal the win for the Lions.

Both teams showed their strength in the paint, combining for a total of 84 points scored inside. In the end, Commerce's solid defense, including a shot-clock violation forced on the Demons, and their accurate free-throw shooting helped them clinch the win.

McNeese State downs Northwestern State 21-7 in spring football action

Story and photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2021 All Rights Reserved

NATCHITOCHES, LOUISIANA (March 20, 2021) McNeese State quarterback Cody Orgeron completed 17-of-22 passes and two touchdown as the Cowboys downed the Northwestern State Demons by the score of 21-7 at Turpin Stadium in Natchitoches.

On their second possession, at the 4:42 mark of the first quarter, the Demons drove 91 yards in eight plays to score the first touchdown of the game. Quarterback Kaleb Fletcher (Poteet HS, Mesquite, Texas) completed a 13-yard pass to wide receiver Kendrick Price, Jr. (Lindale HS, Lindell, Texas) for the score. The Cowboys evened the score 2:35 later when tight end Jama Pettigrew (St. Augustine HS, New Orleans, Louisiana) caught a two-yard pass from Orgeron (Mandeville HS, Mandeville, Louisiana) to cap a 59-yard drove that lasted 2:29. Both teams converted the kicking extra points to tie the score at seven after 15 minutes of play. After a spirited and intense second quarter, neither team was able to find the end zone, with the score remaining tied at seven at halftime.

It did not take long for McNeese to find the end zone in the third quarter. On the third play in the second half; a first-and-ten play, Oregron finds wide receiver Trevor Begue (St. Thomas More HS, Lafayette, Louisiana) open on the right side of the field; connecting with a 75-yard pass for the Cowboys' second TD of the game. Jacob Abel (Goddard Eisenhower HS, Goddard, Kansas) added the extra point to give McNeese a 14-7 lead with 13:45 remaining in the third quarter. Not limiting their scoring to the air, the Cowboys added a rushing touchdown to the scoreboard six minutes later. Backup quarterback Walker Wood (Lafayette HS, Lafayette, Kentucky) kept the ball and plunged over the goal line from the one-yard line for the third touchdown for the Cowboys. Abel again added the kicking conversion to push the McNeese lead to 21-7 and the eventual win, 

For McNeese, Begue led the game with 165 receiving yards, on eight catches and one touchdown.  Freshman Josh Parker (Catholic HS, baton Rouge, Louisiana) rushed for 77 yards  on 16 carries, with Sam Andre accounting for seven tackles). The Demons were paced by Fletcher, completing 13-of-18 for 177 yards, while Javon Antonio (East St. John HS, LaPlace, Louisiana) caught six passes for 103 yards. The Cowboys raised their season record to 2-3, with a 1-3 mark in Southland Conference action. The Demons fall to 0-3 in both their season and conference games.

HBU Huskies downs Northwestern State Demons to kickoff conference schedule

Darius Lee shown 
against Arizona State
 on Nov 23, 2021.
Photo courtesy of
HBU Media Relations
 Department.
Used with permission

By Robert H Kelly

Copyright 2021 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (January 2, 2021) Darius Lee hit two free throws with one second remaining in regulation to tie the score at 84 and send the HBU Huskies and Northwestern State Demons to overtime. The Huskies outscored the Demons 15-9 in overtime in route to a 99-93 win on Saturday night at Sharp Gymnasium. The win pushed the Huskies to a 2-7 record and 1-0 in the Southland Conference. The Demons fell to 1-11 and 0-1 in conference play. 

Two Huskies tallied double-doubles in the game; Daniel and Pedro Castro (shown right). Daniel put up big numbers against the Demons. He completed 9-of-14 from the field, including 2-of-4 from three-point range and 10-of-11 free throws for 30 points. In addition, pulled down 10 rebounds. Castro tallied 19 points and 11 rebounds. Janacek Hunter and Boothman Za-Ontay added 16 and 13 points, respectively. For the Demons, Larry Owens put in 24 points, with Trenton Massner adding 22. In previous game between the two teams, the Demons hold a 7-5 edge dating back to 2007. 

The Huskies will next face Abilene Christian on Wednesday, January 6 at Sharp Gymnasium. The Demons will take on Incarnate Word in Natchitoches, also on January 6.

No. 5 Northwestern State downs No.8 TAMU-CC in first round of Southland Conference tournament

Story and photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2020 All Rights Reserved

KATY, TEXAS (March 11, 2020) In the first game of the 2020 Hercules Tires Southland Conference Men's Basketball Tournament, No. 5 Northwestern State downed No. 8 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi by the score of 79-62 in front of a scant crowd at the Leonard E. Merrell Center in Katy, Texas. With the win, the Demons will next face No. 4 Sam Houston State on Thursday, March 12 with a 5 p.m. CDT tip-off.

The game will be played with few, if any fans in attendance, as the Southland Conference announced during the game, that it will limit attendance beginning Thursday morning due to precautions related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

"Beginning with Thursday's women's first round and men's second round games, arena entry will be restricted to participating teams, game officials, tournament staff, spirit groups (at each institution's discretion), credentialed media, other support personnel, and family members included on the team's official pass list. There will be no entry allowed for ticket holders and no opportunity to purchase tickets at the Merrell Center." (from the Southland Conference Press Release)

Against the Islanders the Demons jumped out to a 41-36 lead, after trailing early in the first half, due to the shooting of Chudier Bile (Denver, Colorado/Bradley). The 6-7 junior forward tallied 17 points in just over 24 minutes of play. He was joined by junior starting guard Jarius Roberson (Dallas, Texas, Trinity Valley Community College), who also scored 17 points, and Brian White, who added 13.  Bile a;sp pulled down eight rebounds, to lead the Demons. For the Islanders, Jordan Hairston came off the bench to score 19 points, along with five rebounds'; with Perry Francois adding 10.

TAMU-CC head back home with a 14-18 season record and an early exit from the tournament. The past two years, The Islanders have advanced to the conference tournament; only to be ousted in the first round by Central Arkansas (73-53) in 2019 and New Orleans (83-76) in 2018.

As far as the Demons, the win was the first in SLC tournament play since 2015, when the beat McNeese 96-89 in the second round; only to fall to eventual tournament champions Stephen F. Austin (91-79) in the semi-finals

HBU downs Northwestern State Lady Demons 3-1; qualifies for SLC Volleyball Tourney

Photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2017 All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2017 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 4, 2017) The Houston Baptist University Huskies punched their ticket to the Southland Conference Volleyball Tournament with a 3-1 win over the Northwestern State Lady Demons at Sharp Gymnasium on Saturday. The Huskies won the first two sets; 25-21 and 25-19, before dropping the third set 15-25. They rallied in the fourth set, narrowly outscoring the Lady Demons 25-23 to take the match and their ninth conference win.

The Huskies were led by middle blocker Blair Gillard, who recorded 11 kills five digs, five blocks and three assists. Fellow senior Bailey Banks, who plays outside hitter, had seven digs and seven kills, to go along three assists and a block.

Next up for the Huskies is a Thursday, November 9 match up against New Orleans, followed by a Saturday, November 11 game versus Southeastern Louisiana to close out the regular season. HBU will kickoff the 2017 Southland Conference Tournament on Friday, November 17 against a yet undermined opponent. The Huskies currently stand in fourth place in conference play, behind SFA (13-2), Central Arkansas (12-2), and Sam Houston State (10-4).

The Southland Conference Tournament will be hosted by Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi at the Dugan Wellness Center. The first six matches will be streamed live on the Southland Digital Network with the championship game stream live on ESPN3. The winner of the Southland Conference Tournament will receive an automatic bod to the NCAA National Championship Tournament.

Last minute field goal by Northwestern State leads to HBU loss

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2017 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (October 28, 2017) The Northwestern State Demons kicked a 36-yard field goal with three seconds remaining game to down the Houston Baptist University Huskies by the score of 10-7 at Husky Stadium in Houston on Saturday, October 28, 2017. After 55 minutes of scoreless football, both the Houston Baptist University Huskies and Northwestern State Demons scored in the final five minutes of regulation. The Demons took the final kickoff of the game; moving the ball 29 yards in five plays to boot the field goal and pick up their first Southland Conference win of the season.

The first three possessions by the Huskies ended with fumbles, but HBU found that fate swung back in their favor when the recovered a Demon fumble at the 10:28 mark in the second quarter. They began their fourth drive of the game on their own 40-yard-line. Being unable to secure the first down, the Huskies were forced to punt and give the ball back to Northwestern State. The Demons were also unable to capitalize on the possession when safety Nicholas Smith found himself in position to intercept a Clay Holgerson pass; returning it to the the Demon 31-yard-line. After three plays, the Huskies attempted a 50-yard field goal; which was low. Northwestern State took possession of the ball. They ended the drive with their own field goal attempt; which was wide left. With 1:11 remaining in the half, HBU took possession to close out the first half.

The second half was pretty much a continuation of the first half; minimal offense and mistakes on both sides. Nonetheless, both squads  tried very hard to find any weakness in their opponent's defense to get the ball over the goal line or between the uprights. The Demons finally would the opening with 4:55 remaining in the game when Chris Jones rushed up the middle for 23 yards and the touchdown for the score. Eric Piccione added the kicking conversion to give the Demons a late 7-0 lead.

HBU took the kickoff and began their drive on their own 29-yard line; driving 71 yards in 13 plays to tie the score; on a two-yard pass from Bailey Zappe to Terrance Peters with 1:05 to play. NSU took the kickoff and moved the ball down the field to kick the field goal for the win.

McNeese State advances in Southland Conference Baseball Tournament

Photo by Chris Price
Copyright 2016 All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2016 TexSport Publications

SUGAR LAND, TEXAS (May 25, 2016) Capitalizing on 10 hits, the No. 6 McNeese State Cowboys took the first game of the Southland Conference Baseball Tournament with a 3-0 win over the No. 3 Northwestern State Demons on Wednesday, May 25, 2016. The tournament returned to the Houston area in 2016 and is being played at Constellation Field in Sugar Land, Texas.

The Cowboys, who raised their season record to 30-23, scored a single run in the seventh inning, adding two additional runs in the eighth. The Demons managed only four hits in the loss with starting pitcher Adam Oller, who pitched seven complete innings, receiving the loss. Cowboy starting pitcherKaleb Fontenot raised his record to 6-5 for the season with the win. The Ville Platte, Louisiana native faced 29 batters, gave up two hits, while striking out 12 and walking only three. Collin Kober, pitching one inning in relief, gave up two hits and was credited with his ninth save of the season. CatcherCameron Toole was 1-for-3 for the Cowboys with one run and one RBI. Center fielder Ricky Ramirez was also 1-for-3, with one run. Shortstop Will Fox went 3-for-4 to increase his hit total to 43 in 2016.

With the loss, the Demons drop to 33-23 and will face the loser of the New Orleans vs. Southeastern Louisiana game on Thursday, May 26 with a 9 a.m. first pitch. McNeese State will play the winner of the New Orleans-Southeastern Louisiana matchup on Thursday, May 26 with a 4 p.m. start. In other action on Wednesday, No. 1 Sam Houston will face No. 8 Stephen F. Austin at 4 p.m. with No. 4 Lamar taking on No. 5 Central Arkansas in the nightcap with a scheduled 7 p.m. start.

Northwestern State extends season; downs Nicholls State, 88-71

Courtesy of Southland Conference Communications

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2014 TexSport Publications

KATY, TEXAS (March 13, 2014) The No. 4 Northwestern State Demons extended their season Thursday evening (March 13, 2014) by defeating the No. 5 Nicholls State Colonels by the score of 88-72 in second round action of the 2014 Southland Conference men’s basketball tournament in Katy, Texas.

Those fans in attendance from the Houston metropolitan area saw five Demon players score in double figures with forward DeQuan Hicks coming off the bench to score 21 points and pull down 10 rebounds.

The 6-7 senior from Racine, Wisconsin shot 6-of-12 from the field and 9-of-12 from the free throw line.

Then double-double was his 10th this season and the 13th of his career.

Starting center Marvin Frazier and starting guard Jalan West both connected for 18 points each, while Ziklteran Woodley hit for 11 and Brison White tallied 10.

With the win, the Demons advance to the semifinal round where they will face the number one seed, the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks at 5 p.m. on Friday, March 14.

SFA is coming off a 29-2 season in which they were 18-0 in conference play.

They two losses came against Texas, 72-62 on November 12 and on November 23, where they dropped a 66-58 decision to East Tennessee State.

Nicholls State had three players in double figure; led by Jeremy Smith with 24 points.

Dantrell Thomas and T.J. Carpenter added 12 and 11 points, respectively.

The Demons had a slight edge in rebounding (46-42), in the paint points (38-34) fast break points (10-4) and bench points (31-11).

The Colonels end their season with a 14-15 record.

The Southland Conference men’s tournament continues through Saturday, March 15 with the championship game scheduled for 7:30 p.m. which will be televised on ESPN2 and ESPN3.

HBU Huskies down Northwestern State for first Southland Conference win

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2014 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (January 12, 201`4) Houston Baptist’s Tyler Russell scored 16 points against Northwestern State on Saturday evening, but his final two points of the game will be remembered for years to come.

With HBU railing 97-96 late in the game, the junior guard hit a baseline jumper with seven-tenths of a second remaining to give the Huskies a 98-97 win over the Demons at Sharp Gymnasium in Houston on January 11, 2014.

HBU led by 15 points at the 16:47 mark in the second half, but the Demons battled back to take a one point lead with 16 seconds left in the game.

The Huskies got the ball back after the score, which allowed Russell to take a shot with six seconds remaining.

His shot missed and was quickly rebounded by Marcel Smith, who passed the ball back to Russell for the winning shot.

The win was the first-ever for HBU in Southland Conference action and raised their season record to 4-12 and a 1-3 conference mark.

Smith tallied 21 points for HBU, followed by Rob Lewis with 20 and Russell’s 16.

Cody Joyce also scored in double-digits with 10 points.

Eleven Huskies got into the scoring column, with the bench recording 37 of HBU’s 98 points.

The Huskies scored 40 points in the paint, 18 second chance points and six on fast-breaks.

Reveal Chukwujekwu pulled down 11 of the Huskies 39 rebounds while Dauson Womack added eight.

For the Demons, Jalen West scored 31 points, with Zikiteran Woodley adding 24 and DeQuan Hicks with 20.

HBU will hit the road for their next two contests, facing Nicholls State on January 16 and McNeese State on January 18.

The McNeese State game will be broadcast on ESPN3.