The National Park College (NPC) Nighthawk men’s and women’s basketball teams struggled on the road against North Arkansas College over the weekend, with the women falling to the Lady Pioneers, 89-62, and the Nighthawk men dropping a 125-104 contest to the Pioneers.
After falling behind, 8-0, to start the game, the Nighthawk women (5-5) were forced to play from behind early. Behind eight- and seven-point first-half efforts from freshmen Nya Moody (Lake Hamilton) and Imani Honey (Hot Springs), respectively, the Nighthawks attempted to cut into the Lady Pioneers lead but could not defend against North Arkansas College’s assault from beyond the arc.
Trailing, 46-30, entering the second half, the Nighthawks struggled offensively, with just three field goals made in the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, the Nighthawks gained momentum behind seven points from Moody, but were handed their first NJCAA Region II Division II conference loss of the season.
Moody led the Nighthawks in scoring with 18 points, while Honey contributed 16 points in the loss.
In men’s action, National Park College (7-6) battled shot-for-shot with the Pioneers within the game’s first six minutes, but with 13:50 remaining, North Arkansas College erupted for a 19-4 run that would give the Pioneers a lead that would not be relinquished. Despite early NPC foul trouble, the Nighthawks continued to battle behind 21 first-half points from freshman Joe Ramey (El Dorado) to cut the deficit to 65-40 entering halftime.
Fueled by 21 points from freshman Kamryn Vick (Little Rock) and 18 points from Ramey, combined with 24-of-25 shooting from the free throw line, the Nighthawks would outscore the Pioneers, 64-60 over the second half, but ultimately could not overcome the deficit.
Ramey led the Nighthawks in scoring with 39 points, while freshmen Kamryn Vick (Little Rock) and Lane Kersey (Lake Hamilton) added 24 and 10 points, respectively, in the loss.
“I was proud of our guys who fought at the end,” Nighthawk men’s head coach Jason Hudnell said. “Over the last eight-to-10 minutes of the game, we had a group out there who were playing for the name on their front of their jersey. We came back and ended up winning the second half because of the effort they gave. We have to find a way to be able to guard people. It doesn’t matter how many points you score—if you’re going to give up that many, you’re going to be in a tough spot every night.”
The Nighthawk men play host to Central Baptist College’s junior varsity team today at 7 p.m. in “The Kettle” at National Park College in Hot Springs. XZero Sports will stream the game live at www.xzerosports.com. The Nighthawk women return to action Saturday at SAU Tech at 5 p.m.
For more information on schedules, rosters and more, visit www.np.edu/basketball. Visit Nighthawk Men stats and Nighthawk Women stats for up-to-date NJCAA statistics on the Nighthawks this season. Fans can also follow the Nighthawks all season on social media.
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