By JASON PUGH, Special to the Journal

NATCHITOCHES – Rick Cabrera’s introduction as Northwestern State’s new basketball coach Thursday afternoon was just another part of a longtime dream.

“My dream job is being here as your head coach,” Cabrera told NSU supporters in an afternoon event on campus. “When I decided to get into coaching, I laid down at night and said, ‘I want to be a Division I head basketball coach.’ This is my first opportunity, so this is my dream job. I’m so greatly appreciative of having this opportunity. There are only 363 (Division-I head coaching jobs). I had people believe in me that I was the next man to win an NCAA Tournament game.

“Just watching a Fairleigh Dickinson, Florida Atlantic, I say, ‘Why not us?’ That’s the attitude you’ve got to have.”

Cabrera, 47, said he wants to instill a “tough” team for the 2023-24 season and beyond, but Thursday was a chance for the first-time Division I head coach to show the other side of his emotional spectrum.

He fought back tears when speaking about his wife, Danielle, and had to compose himself when his thoughts turned to his late father Hugo Sr., saying out loud through a raspy voice, “I’m not going to talk about Dad,” to which his sister sitting in the front row responded, “He’s here.”

A six-year head coach at Lackawanna College (2004-08) and Tallahassee Community College (2021-23), Cabrera compiled a record of 152-45. He guided TCC to the National Junior College Athletic Association’s Final Four and a 31-6 record this winter, earning HoopDirt.com’s NJCAA national Coach of the Year honor.

He has also accumulated 13 years as a Division I assistant at Chattanooga, Tennessee Tech, Austin Peay and Arkansas State.

“As we went through the search process, it was clear coach Cabrera possessed all the qualities we desired in a head coach,” NSU director of athletics Kevin Bostian said. “We wanted somebody who was an elite recruiter and a developer of young men, not only on the court but off it as well. We wanted someone to fit the culture of Northwestern State. His enthusiasm, passion, energy and hands-in-the-dirt approach and grind-it out work ethic were a perfect match.”

Cabrera’s biggest takeaways from his journey? Patience and the value of family.

Throughout his remarks, Cabrera referenced a handful of quotes. One related to the Cabrera family as a whole.

“A quote that has always stuck in my head is, ‘A good coach needs a patient wife or husband, a loyal dog and a great post player, but not necessarily in that order,’” he said. “I definitely have two of the three in a patient wife and a loyal dog. I have a great post player coming, just wait and see.”

For Cabrera, Thursday’s introduction was the culmination of a two-decade journey that began as a graduate assistant at Tennessee Tech where he played basketball and baseball. It wound through Miami Killian High School and Keystone College before taking him to Lackawanna College in his wife’s hometown of Scranton, Pa.

It was during his time at Keystone that Cabrera had a bit of an epiphany and discovered just how much he wanted to coach basketball.

“I was a dorm director and an assistant coach at Keystone College,” Cabrera said. “I wish I had kept my first pay stub from Keystone College. I remember it. With taxes taken out, it was $159.38 just for the coaching stipend. That was every two weeks. I’ll never forget it. I’m out of college, and I have a master’s degree. I’m thinking, ‘What am I doing?’ It’s all about patience. It has paid off. It has allowed me to take care of myself and my family.”

It also led Cabrera to a place that helped him develop as a New York City high school basketball player.

“Dale Brown is a great friend, not a good friend,” Cabrera said of LSU’s legendary former coach. “I talked to him this morning for 20 minutes. He’s 87 years old and kicking like he did when he was 45. When I was (growing up) in New York City, Dale Brown was great friends with my dad, and my dad got him a player by the name of Jose Vargas from the Dominican Republic. Dale said, ‘Bring your son to our camp.’ I went my freshman year, sophomore year, junior year and senior year. Dale is a mentor of mine. He’s always been good to me.”

Brown wasn’t the only iconic Louisiana coach Cabrera referenced Thursday. He paid respects to longtime Demon head coach Mike McConathy.

“Mike McConathy is a guy I followed in my Division I career,” Cabrera said. “He was a heck of a coach. One of my assistant coaches came up to me in my first year at Tallahassee in the middle of the season. We were struggling on getting some offense early in the shot clock. He came up to me and said, ‘Coach, listen, I was at Southeastern Louisiana. That coach at Northwestern State had an unbelievable secondary break. They scored really quickly. At some point, they led the country in scoring (2014-15).’

“I don’t have an ego. I steal from everybody in the coaching community. I said, ‘OK, let’s try it. As a head coach, I’m going to allow you to put it in.’ He put it in and our offense was like, ‘Pop.’ It changed in a day.

“Thank you, coach McConathy. I appreciate that. Your legacy is still here. As an assistant coach, I watched you win a lot. I look forward to talking to you in the near future.”

Contact Jason at pughj@nsula.edu

JOURNAL SPORTS

The Louisiana Tech-ULM neighborhood football rivalry is back on, albeit several years away from kicking off.

Wednesday, the schools announced a two-game, home-and-home scheduling agreement to meet in 2030 and 2031.

The renewal of the rivalry is Sept. 21, 2030 at Joe Aillet Stadium in Ruston and the following season on Sept. 13, 2031, at Malone Stadium in Monroe.

The two programs were scheduled to face one another in 2020 at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, but the game was canceled due to COVID-19 issues within the ULM football program.

The programs have met a total of 43 times with Louisiana Tech leading the all-time series, 30-13. The Bulldogs have won eight straight over the Warhawks, including the last meeting which was a 42-19 victory on Nov. 11, 2000, in Monroe.

At its peak in the 1980s, the annual contests filled both stadiums and generated intense interest. Tech shifted to the FBS ranks (then Division I-A) in 1987 and exited the Southland Conference, just before ULM (then Northeast Louisiana, led by Shreveport-Southwood quarterback Stan Humphries) soared to the NCAA Division I-AA championship, with former Tech player and assistant coach Pat Collins as head coach. A 44-7 ULM rout in Ruston that year was the last Warhawks’ triumph; the Bulldogs won the eight meetings since, annual home-and-home contests ending in 1991, then picking up again for four years from 1997-2000.

Louisiana Tech athletic department spokesman Kane Maguire said existing non-conference football contracts already in place were among the factors that kept the nearby rivals from colliding any sooner than seven years from now.

JOURNAL SPORTS

NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State officially will welcome Rick Cabrera as the 11^th men’s basketball head coach in program history – and second in as many seasons —  with a 2 p.m. introduction today. 

The event, which is open to NSU students, faculty, fans and the media, will be held in the ballroom inside the NSU Student Union in the center of campus.

Cabrera was named Hoop Dirt’s national Junior College Coach of the Year on Monday, after leading Tallahassee Community College to a 31-6 record and the NJCAA Final Four as a national 12-seed.

He was named NSU’s new head coach last Wednesday, taking over for Corey Gipson, who departed NSU after one 22-win season to take the head coaching job at his alma mater, Austin Peay. 

The 47-year-old Cabrera, a native of Spring Valley, New York, has 13 seasons as an NCAA Division I assistant coach at his alma mater, Tennessee Tech, Arkansas State and Austin Peay.

Head coach from 2004-08 at Lackawanna College in Scranton, Pa., Cabrera began his coaching career in the high school ranks following his playing days at Tennessee Tech. In his six years as a head coach at Lackawanna and Tallahassee Community College, Cabrera has compiled an overall record of 152-45. 

JOURNAL SPORTS

NATCHITOCHES — Solid pitching performances and home runs from Jordan Manning and Katelin Cooper lifted the Louisiana Tech softball team to a 5-1 win at Northwestern State and a sweep of the season series.

Tech (20-12) got on the board early with Manning’s three-run home run to left field in the second inning. Cooper followed with a solo shot in the third to left centerfield.

Emma Hutchinson worked the first three innings and Allie Floyd pitched the final four, holding the Lady Demons (16-14) in check and stranding 10 baserunners.

Tech only had four hits to six for NSU, but three of the visitors’ hits were for extra bases.

“Those two big swings put them up and gave them some breathing room and we couldn’t get anything going despite some pretty good at bats early in the game,” said NSU coach Donald Pickett. “We had a lot of chances late and didn’t have those quality at bats there like we did earlier.” 

“Allie (Floyd) really grinded there late to keep Northwestern from doing damage. I am really proud of how she competed tonight being able to get out of a tough situation. We made some big plays late and the home runs that we got played a huge role,” said Techsters’ coach Josh Taylor.

Brooke Diaz led the Techsters with two hits, including a two-out RBI double down the third base line in the fifth. She also singled ahead of Manning’s bomb.

In the sixth, a leadoff walk and back-to-back one-out singles loaded the bases for the Lady Demons. Tristin Court came through with her second hit of the day, a sharp single to right to plate Laney Roos and make it 5-1. That was all NSU got in the inning though after Floyd notched an infield pop up and fly out to deep left field and left the bags full. 

The first two batters of the seventh also reached base but did not advance as Floyd recorded a three-pitch strikeout, a foul out and another strikeout to end the game. 

NSU left seven runners on base in the final three innings.

JOURNAL SPORTS 

GREENVILLE, S.C. – Behind a suffocating defensive performance, LSU earned its first trip to the NCAA Women’s Final Four in 15 years, defeating Miami (Fla.), 54-42, on Sunday evening at Bon Secours Wellness Arena. 

Benton’s Emily Ward, who earned a scholarship in preseason after previously being a walk-on in the program in her first three seasons, is a senior who has played in 25 games for the Tigers. Shreveport native Jennifer Roberts, an Evangel Christian and Louisiana Tech graduate, is part of Kim Mulkey’s LSU women’s basketball staff. 

LSU (32-2) returns to the Women’s Final Four for the first time since making five straight appearances from 2004-08. The Tigers will face the winner of tonight’s matchup in Seattle between No. 1 regional seed Virginia Tech and No. 3 seed Ohio State (8:30 p.m. CT). Iowa will take on the winner of South Carolina vs. Maryland (6 p.m. CT) in the other national semifinal. 

Friday’s national semifinal will tip off at either 6 or 8:30 p.m. CT from American Airlines Center in Dallas. 

Mulkey, a three-time national championship coach at Baylor (2005, 2012, 2019), advanced to the Women’s Final Four for the fifth time in her 23-year career as a head coach, along with four straight appearances as a point guard at Louisiana Tech and seven more at her alma mater in 15 years as an assistant coach to Leon Barmore. She and Barmore are in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame for their coaching accomplishments.

JOURNAL SPORTS

The Centenary athletic complex turned into the Field of Dreams Saturday, with a no-hitter in baseball and a landmark softball win next door.

Freshman right-hander Aidan Reichek threw a no-hitter in the second game of Centenary’s Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader against the University of Dallas Crusaders, an 18-0 run-rule victory, at Shehee Stadium.

The Diamond Gents (10-6, 3-2 SCAC) fell 11-4 in the first contest to the Crusaders (11-10, 2-3 SCAC) and took their frustrations out in the second game, scoring a season-high in runs on 18 hits as the rookie Reicheck shined.

The no-hitter is the first thrown since Matthew Devillier held Austin College hitless on April 20, 2018 at home. Reichek and Devillier’s no-hitters are the only two in the Division III era (2012-present) in program history.

Meanwhile, just over baseball’s right field fence, the Centenary softball team recorded its biggest victory as a Division III program as the Ladies edged No. 4 Texas Lutheran 7-6 to start a Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader at the Centenary Softball Complex.

The Ladies (6-14, 2-4 SCAC) handed the Bulldogs, ranked fourth nationally by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA), their first Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference loss since March 2, 2019. TLU (16-3, 5-1 SCAC) responded with an 8-1 win in the nightcap. The Ladies had only beaten the Bulldogs twice in 33 all-time meetings (two wins in 1990) before Saturday. 

By LEE HILLER, Journal Sports

Bossier Parish used big innings in each game of a Region XIV doubleheader with Trinity Valley and some stellar pitching to take both games 8-0 and 7-1 on Wednesday afternoon.

The Lady Cavaliers took advantage of a misplayed two-out fly ball to right field by scoring six unearned runs in the fourth inning to break open a 0-0 ball game.

Skylar Heger got things going with a one-out single and was sacrificed to second by Fia Tofi. Taysia Constantino then lifted a fly ball to right that was misplayed into a two-base error and scored Heger. A hit batsman and walk loaded the bases to set up a run-scoring single by Piper Garcia and a 2-0 lead. Makinzie Stutts scored two runs with a double and a third run came home when the ball ended up in the BPCC dugout and the Ladies led 5-0. Stutts scored the final run of the big inning when Briana DeLeon singled her in.

Tofi hit a solo home run in the fifth and DeLeon doubled in Garcia to end the first game by the eight-run rule in the sixth.

Macie LaRue (8-4) got the six-inning complete game win allowing two hits, one walk and struck out nine.

The second game resembled the first game as both starting pitchers locked up in a duel. The Cardinals scored their only run of the day in the first inning and took the 1-0 lead into the sixth inning when the Cavaliers finally broke through to score their seven runs.

Catcher Gracie Bellard drew a bases loaded walk to score DeLeon with the first run. Madison Ruiz followed her with a two-run single and a 3-0 lead. A Garcia hit loaded the bases to set up a bases clearing triple by Stutts. DeLeon singled in Stutts with the final run.

Mallory Pitre (8-4) got the second game win allowing eight hits, walking one and striking out 10.

Bossier Parish is now 23-7, 5-1 with the wins and TVCC drops to 17-17, 0-2.

JOURNAL SPORTS 

GRAMBLING — Willis Reed, a proud Grambling State product who arose to basketball immortality as a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, died Tuesday at age 80. 

Reed, who was born on June 25, 1942, in Dubach, was raised in Bernice. He earned a football scholarship from coach Eddie Robinson to Grambling State in 1960 and quickly found his way onto Fred Hobdy’s basketball team as well. While with the Tigers, he dazzled fans and dominated the court, closing his collegiate career with 2,280 career points as he sparked Grambling to an NAIA National Championship in 1961. As a senior, he averaged 26.6 points per game and 21.3 rebounds per contest. 

In 1963, he helped the United States win a gold medal in the Pan American Games held in São Paulo, Brazil. 

Upon completing his amateur career, he was drafted by the New York Knicks in the second round of the 1964 NBA Draft. Following his first season in the league, Reed was named the NBA Rookie of the Year and made the NBA All-Rookie First Team, beginning a legendary career. 

During his illustrious professional career, Reed won two NBA Championships, earned two NBA Finals MVP awards (1970, 1973) for world championship Knick teams, was named the NBA’s MVP in 1970, was a seven-time NBA All-Star, won an NBA All-Star game MVP award and was a five-time All-NBA selection. Reed also earned one NBA All-Defensive Team recognition and was selected to the NBA’s 50th and 75th Anniversary Teams. 

His participation in the NBA Finals Game 7 in 1970 remains one of the most stirring events in basketball history. Reed suffered a severe thigh injury in Game 5, a muscle tear that sidelined him for the next game. After the Los Angeles Lakers tied the series at 3-3, Reed took a shot of cortisone and limped out to the excitement of teammates and the packed Madison Square Garden home crowd, sank the first two baskets and propelled New York to the NBA crown. 

His No. 19 jersey was also retired by the New York Knicks. He was enshrined in the NAIA Hall of Fame (1970), the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1981, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame a year later and was also in the College Basketball Hall of Fame (2006) and the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame (2016). 

Upon his retirement from the NBA in 1974, Reed embarked on a coaching and administrative career beginning in 1977 when became the head coach of the Knicks. From 1981-85, he served as the head coach of Creighton University’s men’s basketball program. He also spent time as a volunteer coach at St. John’s University.

After exiting the college ranks, he made assistant coaching stints with the Atlanta Hawks and Sacramento Kings. In 1988, he assumed head coaching duties of the New Jersey Nets. He moved into the Nets’ front office one year later where he was hired as the general manager and vice president of basketball operations, a position he held until 1996 when he was promoted to senior vice president of basketball operations. During his tenure, he helped craft New Jersey into a title contender. The Nets reached the 2002 and 2003 NBA Finals.

In 2004, Reed took the position of vice president of basketball operations with the New Orleans Hornets. He retired in 2007. 

“The department of athletics mourns the passing of legendary former Grambling State basketball player Willis Reed,” said Vice President and Director of Athletics Dr. Trayvean Scott. “He was one of the game’s most fierce competitors with many legendary accomplishments both on and off the court. He will be remembered for being an inspiration to all he encountered — from rural Louisiana to the bright lights of New York City. Our thoughts and prayers are with Mrs. Gale and the entire Reed family at this time.” 

“The Grambling State University family is saddened by the loss of Willis Reed. He was a legend in his own right, and a close friend to my family,” said GSU President Rick Gallot. “His stature and athleticism were equivalent to the depth he gave to the game, his life, and his family. Mr. Reed is the personification of what can be achieved when you purposefully go beyond what is considered possible. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Reed family.” 

Reed was honored by Grambling State in 2022 when he became the first basketball player in school history to have their jersey retired. The court inside the Fredrick C. Hobdy Assembly Center was also named in his honor.

JOURNAL SPORTS

MONROE — Louisiana Tech overcame one large deficit Tuesday night, but could not rally again as the Bulldogs fell, 10-6, to ULM in a non-conference baseball battle at Lou St. Amant Field.

Tech (10-11) struck first in the top of the second when Jonathan Hogart singled through the right side for a 1-0 edge.

The lead was short-lived as ULM (8-14) put up a 5-spot in the bottom half of the inning. The Warhawks did all of their damage with two outs, tallying four singles while also taking advantage of a hit-by-pitch and a Bulldog error to gain a 5-1 advantage.

Tech quickly evened things up at 5-all in the top of the third. After loading the bases via two walks and a hit-by-pitch, Philip Matulia drove the ball to right field for a double that scored two. Walker Burchfield stepped to the plate next and drove in two as well with a single to center.

The ULM offense was not done. The Warhawks tacked on two more in the fifth after opening up the frame with a single and a double. The lead expanded to 10-5 in the sixth when the Warhawks pounded out four more hits to score three.

The Bulldog offense was not able to erase this deficit. After putting up five runs on five hits through the first three innings, the ‘Dogs could only manage three hits (including a solo home run from Ethan Bates in the ninth) the remainder of the game.

JOURNAL SPORTS 

GRAMBLING – After seven years highlighted by a Southwestern Athletic Conference co-championship and a WNIT victory at Ole Miss, Freddie Murray was terminated Monday as Grambling State’s women’s basketball coach. 

Murray was 93-115 overall, including 10-20 this season. Grambling was 9-9 in the SWAC, eighth in the 12-team league. 

He took over as interim coach in 2016-17 and led the Lady Tigers to a pair of 19-win seasons, following the SWAC championship year with a SWAC Tournament title in 2018 and a berth in the NCAA Tournament. 

But after going 39-15 in the conference in his first three seasons, Grambling’s overall and SWAC records dipped. The Lady Tigers were 31-37 in SWAC play in the last four seasons, and 39-71 overall, although challenging non-conference schedules contributed to that overall under .500 performance. 

“THANK YOU GRAMFAN!” Murray wrote on Twitter. “(Eight) years of success, milestones and achievements have unfortunately come to an end at Exit 81 (on Interstate 20). My time at Grambling State University has garnered a lifetime of friendships, memories and relationships I will forever cherish.” 

Murray came to Grambling in 2015 as assistant coach and was promoted to interim head coach early in the next season, and then permanent head coach following the 14-4 SWAC championship run that produced the league’s first postseason tournament win in women’s basketball. 

“I’d like to thank coach Murray for his service to the women’s basketball program and his commitment to the department and wish him the best in his future endeavors,” said Vice President and Director of Athletics Dr. Trayvean Scott, who indicated a national search was underway for a replacement.

Since taking over as AD July 1, 2021, Scott has fired and hired head coaches in football and volleyball and hired new coaches in soccer, track and field and baseball.