HAMMOND, La. – The reigning Southland Conference champion Southeastern Louisiana University football team's attempt to erase a 20-point halftime deficit came up just short in a 30-24 Southland Conference loss to Lamar on Homecoming Saturday afternoon in Strawberry Stadium.
 
SLU (0-7, 0-3 SLC) could not overcome four first-half turnovers and a run of 27 straight points by Lamar (4-3, 3-0 SLC) in the first half. Southeastern cut the lead to 30-24 with just over nine minutes left in the contest, but could get no closer.
 
Zachary Clement (12-for-18, 141 yards, 1 TD) and Eli Sawyer (9-for-16, 210 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT) split time under center for a Lion offense that outgained the visitors, 453-359, but couldn't overcome the minus-4 tally in the turnover margin.
 
Xavier Hill hauled in four passes for 106 yards to lead the Lions, while Darius Lewis grabbed four balls for 76 yards and two scores. Clement paced Southeastern with 58 yards on eight carries, while Bauer Sharp rushed for his fifth overall touchdown of 2023.
 
The Lion defense pitched a shutout in the second half, as Ian Conerly-Goodly and Herman Christophe IV each recorded eight tackles apiece. Arlen Williams, Javen Sanchez and Joshua Randall all collected sacks for SLU.
 
Robert Coleman engineered the Lamar offense, finishing 17-for-22 for 257 yards and two touchdowns. Both scoring tosses went to Sevonne Rhea, who led all players with six catches for 133 yards.
 
Southeastern took the early lead on the game's opening drive. Harlan Dixon took a Sawyer screen pass and broke loose for a 58-yard gain to set up a 31-yard Riley Callaghan field goal to give SLU a 3-0 lead just two minutes into the game.
 
Lamar marched into Lion territory on the ensuing drive. A big sack by Sanchez forced LU to settle for a 43-yard field goal by Chris Esqueda to knot the score at 3-3 with 8:17 left in the opening quarter.
 
SLU retook the lead on its next drive. Sawyer connected with Hill for a 32-yard catch and run to key the march, then found Lewis from 28 yards out to give the Lions a 10-3 advantage with 5:01 left in the first quarter.
 
Southeastern forced a three-and-out on Lamar's next drive and the Lions quickly moved into Lamar territory. However, Jalen Freeman stripped Dixon and KJ Gilbert scooped up the loose ball and returned it 60 yards for a touchdown to tie the score with 2:09 left in the second quarter.
 
The Lions and Cardinals traded empty possessions until Lamar took its first lead midway through the second quarter. Major Bowden scampered in from four yards out on a direct snap to cap a seven-play, 51-yard march and give LU a 17-10 advantage with 7:23 left in the second quarter.
 
After a SLU three-and-out, Lamar extended its lead. Rhea hauled in a 35-yard touchdown pass from Coleman to put the Cards up, 23-10, with 2:59 left.
 
On the next drive, Canden Grogan intercepted a Sawyer pass and returned it to the Lion 37-yard line. On the next play, Rhea ran under a touchdown pass by Coleman to give Lamar a 30-10 advantage heading into halftime.  
 
The two teams traded punts until Southeastern cut into the lead late in the third quarter. Sharp took a direct snap and bulled in from seven yards out to pull SLU within, 30-17, with 1:44 left in the third quarter.
 
The Lions forced another Lamar punt and took over at its own 30-yard line. The Lions marched 70 yards on eight plays. On the scoring throw, Clement eluded pressure, rolled to his right and rifled an 18-yard touchdown pass to Lewis to cut the lead to 30-24 with 9:24 remaining.
 
The two teams traded punts, then Lamar was able to drain the Lions of timeouts and run the final 4:23 of the game out to hand SLU its third straight one-score loss.
 
SLU will next head to Natchitoches for a 2 p.m. Southland contest next Saturday at Northwestern State. The game will be televised on ESPN+ and can be heard can be heard on Kajun 107.1 FM, The Highway 104.7 FM and The Boss 103.7 FM/WFPR 1400 AM.  
 
Season and single-game tickets for the 2023 home football season, which continues with visits from McNeese (Nov. 4) and Nicholls (Nov. 16) are available online at https://vivenu.com/event/2023-football-2klkar.
 
TICKETS
For ticket information, contact the Southeastern Athletics Ticket Office at (985) 549-5466 or visit www.LionSports.net. Southeastern will continue offering mobile ticketing as the primary source for securing tickets for the 2023-24 season. All tickets will be available via e-mail or text message in a PDF format for fans to download on their phone or print at home. Tickets can also be downloaded to Apple Wallet.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Southeastern Football, follow @LionUpFootball and @Coach_Scelfo on X, like /SLUathletics on Facebook and follow lionupfootball on Instagram.
 
TOUCHDOWN CLUB/S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the football program are encouraged to join the Touchdown Club. Lion football alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
 
All membership fees and donations to both the Touchdown Club and S Club (football) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern football program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
 
INSIDE SOUTHEASTERN FOOTBALL WITH FRANK SCELFO
The 2023 season of Inside Southeastern Football with Frank Scelfo is airing from its new home – Walk-On's Sports Bistreaux (305 CM Fagan Dr) in Hammond. Hosted by Scelfo and Allen Waddell, the hour-long radio show will air Mondays throughout the football season on Kajun 107.1 FM, The Highway 104.7 FM and The Boss 103.7 FM/WFPR 1400 AM.
 
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Southeastern Athletics instituted a clear bag policy for all ticketed events, effective with the start of the 2018 football season. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit www.LionSports.net/clear.