Nighthawks close inaugural regular season with win
The National Park College men’s basketball team ended its inaugural regular season as a club sport Monday with a 101-83 victory against Arkansas Baptist College from Little Rock.
The college was previously known as Garland County Community College and competed in various sports, including basketball and tennis, as the Lakers after it was founded in 1973 until the early 1990s when state law adjusted how college athletic programs were funded. Garland County merged with Quapaw Technical Institute in 2003 to become National Park Community College.
The school was rebranded in 2015 to National Park College with a new color scheme featuring shades of blue, black, white and gray. Students selected the Nighthawk as the team mascot in October 2016 after a community-wide nomination process was conducted in the previous months.
National Park College’s trustees approved the addition of club sports a year ago. The Nighthawks began with men’s and women’s basketball in the 2017-18 season. The basketball teams were accompanied by a cheer team.
Monday’s game against Arkansas Baptist was the final game of the regular season at the NPC Wellness Center. The Nighthawks ended the season with a record of 12-5 after taking an early lead and controlling the game throughout.
“This was a great game to end our regular season,” said NPC head men’s basketball coach Jason Hudnell. “We got to play everyone, we had a good crowd and there was a lot energy in the building.
“I cannot say enough positive things about these young men and how they have represented NPC this season. I believe a 12-5 record in our very first season is a fantastic start. It has taken a team of talented individuals to make this happen. The staff and faculty at NPC have been great. he community has really rallied behind us as well. I believe there are some very exciting things in store for Nighthawk Nation.”
Braylon Steen, a 6-6 forward from Bryant, led the Nighthawks with
18 points, seven rebounds and three assists against Arkansas Baptist. He was also the team leader for the season in points and rebounds, averaging 19.8 and 7.5 per game, respectively.
Steen’s Bryant teammate, 6-3 forward Lowell Washington, scored 15 points and had eight rebounds Monday. He finished the season averaging
11.9 points and 6.9 rebounds per game.
K.J. Corder, a 6-3 forward from Hot Springs, added 14 points and six rebounds against the Buffaloes. Corder was the team’s second-leading scorer, averaging 18.9 and 6.2 rebounds per game.
Hudnell said Westin Church, of Pea Ridge, finished the season strong. After scoring 13 in an 81-56 homecoming victory over Champion Christian College, Church added 13 points and three assists against Arkansas Baptist.
Point guard Seth Duke, of Gravette, also compiled several of his best games late in the season. Duke scored 16 points against Champion, 16 in an earlier win over the Buffaloes and 13 on Monday.
Jarvis Ricks, a guard from North Little Rock, added 10 points against Arkansas Baptist.
The first-year team also included student-athletes from Cutter Morning Star, Faith Prep Academy in West Memphis, Hope, Lake Hamilton, and Umpire.
The Nighthawks were 2-3 at the holiday break after a 108-102 double-overtime loss at Champion, but started the spring semester with a
113-106 double-overtime victory over the Tigers and went undefeated in January. They averaged 94 points per game.
National Park College will compete in the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association Collegiate Club Regionals later this month.