HOUSTON, Texas – Houston Christian University fell to #19-ranked Southeastern Louisiana University 38-14 on Saturday afternoon at Husky Stadium. HCU played to a tie until the final play of the first half and trailed by just seven with 10 minutes to play in the third quarter before the Lions methodically pulled away down the stretch to spoil any upset bid by the Huskies.
 
The Huskies took the ball first and took the ball 33 yards in eight plays before giving possession over on downs. Southeastern took over at their own 37 and went the distance in seven plays. The drive was highlighted by a 31-yard completion by Carson Camp to Jaylon Domingeaux and culminated in a one-yard touchdown plunge by Calvin Davis Jr. as the Lions grabbed an early 7-0 lead with 8:41 to go in the opening stanza.
 
Each team would trade stops with HCU taking over again at their 28-yard line with 2:51 to play in quarter one. SLU forced a three and out and Brady Young put up a 59-yard punt that was returned 66 yards to the HCU 15-yard line by Dkhai Joseph with just over a minute left in the period.
 
The Huskies defense would come up with a big play as on second down Tyran Chappell picked off SLU's Kyle Lowe in the endzone to keep the Lions at bay.
 
The Lions would get the ball back at the open of the second period but HCU once again held in its own end. SLU would miss a 44-yard field goal leaving the score 7-0 and giving the Huskies the ball back once again with 12:15 to go in the second.
 
From there, HCU wasted no time. A 73-yard run by Darryle Evans straight up the gut with a penalty attached on the end put the ball at the SLU one-yard line. Xai'Shaun Edwards then plunged to paydirt knotting the game at seven with 11:49 left in the first half.
 
The hosts would get the ball back quickly, as Zayteak McGhee picked off Camp and returned it 39 yards to the 12. The drive would end with no points however, as the Huskies missed a field goal to keep the contest deadlocked with seven minutes left before intermission.
 
With 2:18 remaining, Southeastern caught a break as a booming punt was muffed by HCU, allowing the visitors to retain possession at the HCU 26-yard line. With two seconds left in the half and on fourth down from the one, the Lions cashed in as Deantre Jackson got just enough of the ball across the goal line to allow SLU to retake the lead 14-7 heading into the break.
 
That momentum carried over immediately as Brandon Hayes took the kick-off at the 15 and raced down his own sideline 85 yards for a second-half opening touchdown. The house call gave Southeastern its second score in a matter of 15 seconds of game time, pushing the lead to 21-7 with 14:47 showing on the third quarter clock.
 
After a three-and-out, the Lions had the ball back. On third down, SLU's Carson Camp threw a ball into traffic, where it was batted around before finally ending in the hands of Jaden King. The third interception of the game for HCU would ultimately end in a score, as King returned it 50 yards to pull the Huskies back within a touchdown, 21-14 with 10:19 left to go in the third.
 
After a strong return of the kick-off, SLU drove down to the HCU five-yard line, where the drive stalled. The Lions settled for a 22-yard field goal by Guillermo Garcia Rodriguez to push the lead back to double-digits, 24-14 with just over four minutes on the third period clock. One possession later, the Lions got another big play between Camp and Domingeaux, as the pair hooked up on a 42-yard completion down the sideline to put SLU in the red zone. The visitors scored one play later on 14-yard touchdown reception by Cade Collier on the first play of the final period to push their lead to 31-14 and put the game out of reach.
 
Xai'Shaun Edwards had 44 yards on 13 carries and a touchdown, a team-high three catches for 13 yards and 95 return yards. Darryle Evans led the ground game for HCU with 90 yards on six carries. Maddox Kopp was 10-19 passing with 73 yards with Ja'Ryan Wallace, Braylon Finney and Keith Wheeler registering two grabs apiece.
 
Jayven Anderson had nine tackles to lead the defensive effort while Rodney Dansby and Zayteak McGhee added eight tackles apiece. Chappell had his team and Southland Conference leading fourth pick of the year for the Huskies, while McGhee and Jaden King added their first interceptions of the season, King's a pick-six. HCU now leads the league with 13 interceptions as a team.
 
Southeastern Louisiana (6-2 / 4-0 SLC) was led by a balanced attack on the ground and through the air. Carson Camp finished 12-15 for 169 yards, 87 of those going to Domingeaux on three catches. Deantre Jackson had 13 carries for 64 yards and a score while Calvin Smith Jr. added 51 yards and two scores on nine carries.
 
HCU falls to 2-6 overall and 1-3 in Southland Conference play. The Huskies will return to action next week in Thibodaux, Louisiana when they face Nicholls State University. Kick-off at John L. Guidry Stadium against the Colonels is set for 3 pm.
 
 
#DawgsUp