ITTA BENA, Miss. - Southeastern Louisiana quarterback Trey Willie threw for 279 yards and four scores while the Lion defense held the 10th-ranked offense of Mississippi Valley State to 275 total yards in a 38-21 season-ending non-conference victory on a chilly Saturday afternoon at Rice-Totten Stadium.

Normally relying on their air-attack, Southeastern (4-6, 2-4 SLC) went to the ground game against the Delta Devils (6-5, 5-4 SWAC) racking up 213 yards led by 74 yards on 11 carries by Willie and 69 yards on 13 attempts from Jerald Watson.

Willie, who finished with 353 total yards, went 18-for-32 with only one interception and Hutch Gonzales (5-114, 2TD) and Merrick Lanaux (4-111, 2TD) each recorded over 100 yards receiving as the Lions racked up 492 total yards.

But it was perhaps the Lions' defense which turned in the best performance of the afternoon. Defensive back Duke Adams recorded two of three Southeastern interceptions and Rudy Johnson recorded nine tackles, two sacks and forced a fumble as the Lions' "D" held the Delta Devils nearly 170 yards below their season average and recorded five sacks to go with three forced fumbles.

MVSU quarterback Aries Nelson, who came into the game ranked fifth in the county in total offense, was held in check totaling just 176 yards passing on 15-of-33 aim and rushed for minus-34 yards. Fullback Walter Burnett led MVSU with 119 yards on 17 carries and a score.

"I was extremely proud of the way our guys finished (the season)," remarked Southeastern first-year head coach Dennis Roland. "This is a good football team and our guys showed a lot of character to keep battling when they (Mississippi Valley) made a run at us.

"Our seniors did a great job and went out as winners. They've done a great deal to help build this program and we are forever grateful for their efforts."

The first half, most appreciably the first quarter, was dominated by Southeastern. In fact, the Lions led 14-0 before Valley could record a single first down.

After winning the toss and deferring to the second half, Southeastern's Sherman Daigs forced a fumble on the opening kick and Eric Jackson recovered to set the Lions up at the Valley 29 yard line.

Three plays later, Willie hit Merrick Lanaux on a cross over the middle. He broke free from one defender and bolted into the end zone for an early 7-0 lead with 13:44 left in the first half.

After forcing MVSU into a 3-and-out, Southeastern took over at their own 24 yard line and marched 76 yards in five plays highlighted by a 52 yard scoring strike from Willie to Hutch Gonzales who broke free on the left sideline and ran untouched for the score and a 14-0 lead with 9:04 left in the first quarter.

Southeastern out-gained Valley in first quarter yardage, 182-23, but behind the rushing of Burnett and an improving defense, the Delta Devils started to turn the tide.

Burnett rushed for 35 yards in the second quarter and the defense held the Lions to a pair of 26-yard Jim Hall field goals to keep the score manageable at 20-0.

The Delta Devils added their lone score of the first half as time was winding down. After a solid kickoff return set Valley up on the Lion 49 with 1:34 remaining in the half, Kalvin Woods plunged in from 13 yards out to cap a five-play, 51-yard drive and cut the lead to 20-7 as time expired.

After forcing a pair of three-and-outs for Southeastern, a 30 yard punt return by Carlton Cotton set up Valley at the Lions' 30 yard line. Four plays later, all rushes by Burnett, and Valley was in the end zone cutting the Southeastern advantage to 20-14.

But after a pair of punts, Southeastern would answer with Willie hitting Lanaux for a 45-yard touchdown strike down the right side on the first play of the ensuing drive to push the lead back to 12, 26-14. Electing to go for two points, Willie hit Gonzales as he released from the backfield for the easy conversion and a 28-14 spread.

After forcing another MVSU punt, Southeastern drove 79 yards in 16 plays keyed by a 30-yard run from Willie on fourth and two from the Valley 46 to set up first and goal from the 6. But after a pair of penalties pushed the line of scrimmage back to the 20, the Lions were forced to settle for a 33 yard Hall field goal - his third of the game - and a 31-14 lead.

A rushing touchdown by Nelson from the Southeastern one yard line cut the score to 31-21, leading the Devils to attempt an onsides kick, but Blake Alfortish hauled it in to give the Lions possession at the Valley 45 with 5:34 remaining.

The Lions used the advantageous field position to add an insurance score as Willie hit Gonzales on a 43 yard catch and run for a 38-21 lead to effectively ice the game with four minutes left.

Box Score (Final)
Score by Quarters 1 2 3 4 Score
Southeastern La..... 14 6 8 10 - 38 Record: (4-6,2-4)
Mississippi Valley.. 0 7 7 7 - 21 Record: (6-5,5-4)

Scoring Summary:
1st Quarter
13:44 SLU - Lanaux, Merrick 24 yd pass from Willie, Trey (Hall, Jim kick)
9:04 SLU - Gonzales, Hutch 52 yd pass from Willie, Trey (Hall, Jim kick)

2nd Quarter
9:11 SLU - Hall, Jim 26 yd field goal
1:43 SLU - Hall, Jim 26 yd field goal
00:12 MVSU - WOODS, K. 13 yd run (BLANCO,J. kick)

3rd Quarter
5:33 MVSU - BURNETTE,W. 3 yd run (BLANCO,J. kick)
1:11 SLU - Lanaux, Merrick 45 yd pass from Willie, Trey (Gonzales, Hutch pass from Willie, Trey)

4th Quarter
7:46 SLU - Hall, Jim 33 yd field goal
5:36 MVSU - NELSON,A. 1 yd run (BLANCO,J. kick)
4:00 SLU - Gonzales, Hutch 43 yd pass from Willie, Trey (Hall, Jim kick)

SLU MVSU
FIRST DOWNS................... 22 19
RUSHES-YARDS (NET)............ 42-213 33-99
PASSING YDS (NET)............. 279 176
Passes Att-Comp-Int........... 32-18-1 33-15-3
TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS..... 74-492 66-275
Fumble Returns-Yards.......... 0-0 1-3
Punt Returns-Yards............ 2-3 1-30
Kickoff Returns-Yards......... 3-21 6-134
Interception Returns-Yards.... 3-64 1-0
Punts (Number-Avg)............ 4-37.8 7-41.0
Fumbles-Lost.................. 1-1 3-1
Penalties-Yards............... 12-125 6-48
Possession Time............... 32:27 27:33
Third-Down Conversions........ 8 of 18 3 of 13
Fourth-Down Conversions....... 1 of 2 0 of 1
Red-Zone Scores-Chances....... 3-4 3-3
Sacks By: Number-Yards........ 5-41 2-12

RUSHING: Southeastern La.-Willie, Trey 11-74; Watson, Jerald 13-69; Gilbert, Mario 13-38; Alfortish, Blake 5-32. Mississippi Valley-BURNETTE,W. 17-119; WOODS,K. 4-14; NELSON,A. 12-minus 34.

PASSING: Southeastern La. - Willie, Trey 18-32-1-279. Mississippi Valley - NELSON, A. 15-33-3-176.

RECEIVING: Southeastern La. - Gonzales, Hutch 5-114; Lanaux, Merrick 4-111; Taylor, Josh 4-18; Scates, Robby 2-9; Alfortish, Blake 1-12; Watson, Jerald 1-8; Guidugli, Jeff 1-7. Mississippi Valley-TIMMONS,T. 4-63; COTTON,C. 3-48; CHARLES,D. 3-30; CARTER,C. 3-22; BURNETTE,W. 2-13.