Throughout the 2024 N-Club induction ceremony, one themes stood out: relationships.
All 15 athletes reflected on their times at Northwestern State with pride among their accomplishments, but most notably, the relationships they made while competing in Natchitoches.
“I honestly did not know Natchitoches existed until Coach (Jim) Wells recruited me,” said Troy Conkle, the two-time first team all-conference selection at shortstop in 1992 and 1993. “That one small decision has shaped and formed the rest of my life.”
Conkle was one of 15 athletes inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2024, most of which were either on conference championship-winning teams or were individual champions.
Conkle was also one of three baseball players inducted, He was joined by Matt Donner (1994-95) and Brad Hanson (2001-02). Donner and Hanson each won back-to-back Southland Conference championships with the Demons, both under multiple coaches.
Nathan Black, Gene Tennison and the late Kurt Rodriguez earned their spots in the N-Club Hall of Fame, helping lead the Demons to a conference championship in 1998 and trips to the FCS playoffs in 2001 and 2002.
During the turn of the century, Diamond Cosby Frierson (women’s basketball), Michael Byars-Dawson (men’s basketball), Hillarie Marshall Coleman (soccer) and Shannon Straty Heid (softball) also made their mark in their sports, helping lead teams to SLC championships. Byars-Dawson, who was inducted as a member of the men’s first NCAA Tournament team, was a two-time All-Conference selection and was the 2001 SLC Tournament MVP. Straty Heid helped Northwestern State softball earn three straight SLC championships from 1998-00 and was a three-year All-SLC catcher.
The inductee who played the most recent is tennis player Olga Bazhanova Moore. Moore, who played No. 1 singles and doubles from day one, posted 64 career doubles wins, the sixth-most in program history and 47 singles victories, currently 16th. As a coach, she led the Lady Demons to a conference championship in her first season.
She had to travel 18 hours each way by train to come to Northwestern State and play tennis.
“It was very challenging to come here, especially at that time,” she said. “I am very grateful to Coach Patric (DuBois) for recruiting me here. It was one of the most important decision I made.”
Three track and field athletes were also inducted, Edgar Cooper, Janice Miller Moore and Samantha Ford Hatten all earned their spot in the Hall of Fame.
To open the ceremony, Carlos Treadway, a football player from 1988-92, was given the Distinguished Service Award. He was a two-time all-conference tight end for the Demons who has risen to upper level management in Ford Motor Credit, now serving as Executive Vice President and CEO of Ford Credit Europe.
“All the relationships I have had, many of them have started here,” Treadway said. “I live a long ways away, but I always come back and show up for homecoming and see all those people and all those relationships, it energizes me. I know how special this place is.”