The Natchitoches Community Improvement Foundation will hold a quarterly meeting on Tuesday, April 14 at 6 pm at Legacy Cafe, located at 441 North Street in Natchitoches.
The Natchitoches Police Department is investigating a homicide that occurred early Friday morning on University Parkway. NPD officers were dispatched to the 3800 block of University Parkway on March 27 around 2:54 am in reference to a gunshot victim. Upon officers’ arrival they located the victim, Douglas Roberson (B/M, 22 y.o.a. of Coushatta), suffering from several gunshot wounds and immediately began to render aid while waiting for other first responders to arrive. Despite their efforts, Douglas Roberson was pronounced deceased by the Natchitoches Parish Coroner’s Office as a result of his injuries.
Investigators and officers canvassed the crime scene and were able to speak with several witnesses. They also collected numerous pieces of digital and physical evidence that will be sent to the crime lab for analysis.
This investigation is ongoing and the Natchitoches Police Department will release more details as they become available.
The Natchitoches Police Department would like to thank the Natchitoches Parish Sheriff’s Office and the Northwestern State University Police Department for their assistance during this incident.
If you would like to report suspicious activity please contact the Natchitoches Police Department at (318) 352-8101 or if you have additional information in regards to this investigation please contact Detective Davanta Stevenson at (318) 357-3817. Remember all information given shall remain confidential.
How to report an anonymous tip via Natchitoches Crime Stoppers:
You can also report a tip anonymously by downloading the P3 Tips app on your smart phone or by calling Natchitoches Crime Stoppers at (318) 238-2388. All tips remain confidential and the caller can receive a cash reward up to $5,000 for the arrest of an offender.
A parish-wide burn ban has been extended in Natchitoches Parish as dry conditions and elevated fire risk continue across the region.
Natchitoches Parish President John Salter issued an extension of the emergency declaration originally enacted Feb. 24, citing ongoing drought conditions and increased wildfire danger. The extension will remain in effect for an additional 30 days, set to expire April 26 unless lifted or extended further.
All previously outlined prohibitions remain in place, including the burning of leaves, yard debris, brush and agricultural waste. Parish fire officials have advised that conditions continue to pose a significant threat to life and property.
The extension comes as the National Weather Service Shreveport issued a Special Weather Statement warning of elevated fire weather conditions across northern and central Louisiana, including Natchitoches Parish.
According to the advisory, low humidity levels ranging from 20 to 30 percent, combined with dry vegetation and winds of 10 to 15 mph with higher gusts, are expected to create favorable conditions for wildfire growth from late morning through the evening hours.
Officials strongly discourage outdoor burning and any activities involving open flames or sparks. Residents are urged to report any wildfires to local authorities immediately.
Natchitoches Regional Medical Center (NRMC) today announced a digital healthcare partnership with TeleSpecialists, a physician-owned teleneurology and telepsychiatry provider. Through the partnership, NRMC launches three new neurology services: TeleStroke, TeleNeuroHospitalist, and TeleEEG. Patients and families across Natchitoches, Grant, Winn, Red River, and Sabine parishes who previously had to travel for stroke or neurological treatment can now receive that care at NRMC.
NRMC has grown significantly over the past 12 years, from roughly 75,000 patient encounters annually to more than 225,000 today. The 96-bed facility serves as the primary hospital for the rural communities of approximately 100,000 residents. Prior to this partnership, NRMC had no on-site neurologists, meaning patients experiencing serious neurological events had to be transferred to another facility. The new partnership with TeleSpecialists elevates NRMC to the next level in patient care.
“Expanding our telemedicine services marks a significant step in improving access to specialized neurological care for both our patients and the communities we serve,” said Sarah LaCour, Chief Nursing Offcer. “Through collaboration with trusted partners, such as TeleSpecialists, we are enhancing the depth and reach of our services and providing greater access to high-quality care. This partnership reflects our continued commitment to innovation, excellence, and meeting the evolving healthcare needs of those we serve.”
Through TeleStroke, a board-certified stroke specialist joins the care team virtually at the patient’s bedside within three minutes of arrival to provide time-sensitive treatment, any time of day or night. The TeleNeuroHospitalist program ensures patients admitted for neurological conditions have a specialist guiding their care throughout their hospital stay, without the need for transfer. With TeleEEG, specialists review brain activity for patients experiencing seizures or sudden changes in condition, giving the care team the clinical information needed to make timely decisions.
“Rural communities deserve the same standard of neurological care as any major medical center. Our partnership with NRMC means that when a patient in the greater Natchitoches region shows signs of a stroke, a specialist is there within minutes. Geography should never determine the quality of someone’s care,” said Stephanie Casale, MSN, RN, CPAHA, Quality Program Specialist, TeleSpecialists.
Building on this foundation, NRMC also plans to launch TeleSpecialists’ Outpatient Neurology program in the coming months. The addition of this scheduled follow-up care will allow patients to move from emergency care through recovery without leaving the greater Natchitoches region.
I, Monique Hamilton-Sarpy, am excited to announce my candidacy for the position of Village of Natchez Mayor. With over eight years or 2 terms of experience as an alderman and in governance, I am committed to making our community a better place for all of us.
I am married and have two children. I graduated from Northwestern State University with a degree in Business Administration with a minor in Computer Information System. I also have a degree in General Studies with a background in Criminal Justice. I have a certificate in Entrepreneurship from NSU Small Business Program. Louisiana Technical College Hospitality certification, SHRM learning system certification of completion, along with Southern University certification in Small Business Development. I am a member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc.
With a passion for public service and a strong desire to make a positive impact in The Village of Natchez Community. Where I have lived for all my life, I am aware of the needs of the community, the resources available and concerns of the public that face our community.
In my tenure as alderman some of my achievements were as follow:
My focus will be on the following:
Together, we can create an enriching, vibrant, and inclusive community. I look forward to the opportunity to serve and connect with all of you. Please remember to vote on May 16, 2026. Monique Hamilton-Sarpy for Mayor Ballot number #47.
Sincerely,
Monique Hamilton-Sarpy
Competing in their only home meet of the season, the Northwestern State track and field teams combined to win 19 events at the Leon Johnson NSU Invitational on Saturday at the Walter P. Ledet Track and Field Complex.
It started with Eliska Zahradnickova winning the women’s discus and finished with a victory by Elijah Rowe in the men’s 200-meter dash.
In between, NSU recorded wins by Tarajh Hudson (men’s discus), Samari Finney (women’s long jump), Roy Morris (men’s long jump), Randy Kelly (men’s high jump), Margaret Mannering (women’s hammer), Teodora Samac (women’s javelin), Shakera Williams (women’s shot put), Marquis Butler (men’s triple jump), both the men’s and women’s 4×100 relays, Rushana Dwyer (women’s 200 and 400), Will Achee (men’s 400), Juvonna Cornette (women’s 100), Keontae Gaines (men’s100), Lalaina Wood (women’s 1500) and Clinton Laguerre (men’s 400 hurdles).
The 17 individual events were won by 16 different athletes, as only Dwyer won more than one event.
“I think we had a good day on the track and in the field,” head coach Mike Heimerman said. “Overall, I am very happy. The throwers really shined today, and we were probably good in every event.”
Zahradnickova began the strong day with her big personal best in the discus, tossing 172-6, which not only won the event, but is also the top mark in the Southland Conference.
Zahradnickova, one of the 33 seniors honored during the meet, started a monster day from the throwers.
That continued with Hudson in the men’s discus. Hudson threw a season-best 181-1, which moved him into the top 10 for the NCAA East qualifying and gave him the top mark in the conference.
“That definitely felt good,” Hudson said. “That was my furthest mark in a couple years, so that feels good and it feels good to be on top of the conference. I hope I can keep building on this because and keep getting better because it is a very competitive conference.”
If Hudson wasn’t leading the league in the event, his teammate would be.
Seth Smith had his best career throw, tossing a personal-best 176-2 to place second in the event and second in the Southland.
In the women’s shot put, Shakera Williams tossed a personal-best 47-8 to win the event, while Zahradnickova finished second with a throw of 46-5.75.
In the men’s javelin, Demons legend Cody Fillinich came back and threw in a meet for the first time in 17 years and it is like he never left. The 2025 N-Club Hall of Fame inductee tossed a 217-0 to win the event by a wide margin.
As good as the throws were, the jumps weren’t too shabby either, led by a personal best from Kelly.
In the 2025 Leon Johnson NSU Invitational, he recorded a personal best by clearing 7-0.5, the first time he cleared seven feet. Saturday he was at it again, clearing 7-0.75, a new personal best for the South Carolina native.
“It feels great,” Kelly said. “Last year at this meet, I jumped 2.14 and now this year, I jumped 2.15 meters, so it was great to be able to add onto my personal best. I am just blessed to be able to go out and do it again as a senior.”
Kelly also had a nice day in the men’s long jump, recording a jump of 23-7, only behind teammate, Morris, who recorded a jump of 24-8.5 for his second long jump win in the Leon Johnson NSU Invitational in as many seasons.
While Morris is the king of the men’s long jump team, Finney is the queen on the women’s side, winning with a leap of 19-11.
On the track, the women’s (46.48) and men’s (39.61) ‘A’ teams won the 4×100 relays.
Next up is a trip to Gainesville for the Pepsi Florida Relays, a two-day event starting Friday.
TENNIS: In a match that carried the intensity of a rivalry battle, Northwestern turned early adversity into momentum, sweeping Stephen F. Austin 7–0 on Saturday at the Jack Fisher Tennis Complex.
With emotions running high on both sides, the Lady Demons (10-5 overall, 6-1 in the SLC) leaned on resilience and execution to secure the doubles point and carry that energy through singles play. The No. 1 doubles pairing of v Honoka Umeda and Sofi Garcia faced an early 3–0 deficit but rallied to force a tiebreak and dominated it 7–0 to secure a 7–6 victory and the doubles point.
Head coach Marcos Morelli emphasized the importance of that early momentum after a tight doubles showing the previous weekend.
“We worked on playing on our terms from start to finish, playing aggressive Demon doubles,” Morelli said. “Every doubles point is close. Last weekend we had match points, this weekend it gets decided in a tiebreak. So it was a major talking point for us.”
Umeda quickly extended the lead with a 6–2, 6–2 win over Rooth at No. 1 before Sofi Garcia delivered one of the most impressive comebacks of the match at No. 5.
After taking the opening set, Garcia found herself trailing 5–1 in the second before storming back to claim a 6–1, 7–5 win.
“That’s something we’ve been talking about,” Morelli said. “The girls realized that when adversity comes, you have to fight. If you don’t fight, it’s not going to go your way. They knew they would face adversity in this match, and they were ready to respond the right way.”
Maria Farina clinched the team victory at No. 2 singles, bouncing back from a first-set loss to defeat Ksenia Mamontova 0–6, 6–4, 2–0 before a retirement gave Northwestern a 4–0 lead.
Even after the match was decided, the Lady Demons continued to battle through tight moments.
“The fight has been there in other matches,” Morelli said. “But this time, the girls showed full commitment to their process for almost the entire match. That was the difference.
“This group wants to accomplish big things,” he said. “They know SFA is a tough team, and they understand they have to perform at a high level to reach those goals.”
Northwestern plays a non-conference match Wednesday at UL-Lafayette, then wraps up the regular season at home next weekend with matches Saturday and next Monday.
Northwestern State used a combination of patience and big hits to complete its first Southland Conference softball sweep since 2022 on Saturday afternoon.
The Lady Demons (17-18 overall, 7-5 in the SLC) took advantage of 17 free passes (11 walks and six HBP) to put up their most runs in a game in three years for a 15-2 run-rule win against East Texas A&M (6-31, 1-11).
Friday, Northwestern dominated both ends of a doubleheader, 12-7 and 12-2. As part of a 4-for-4 performance in the first game, Peyton Young hit two home runs, drove in six runs, scored four times and finished a single shy of the cycle.
“We’re excited to get a sweep for the first time since we’ve been here and really proud of the offense today,” head coach Jenny Fuller said. “We’ve been struggling in those third games this year to score runs. They came out ready to roll and put on a show today.”
For the third time on the weekend and the 17th time this season, the Demons scored in the first inning to take an early edge, 2-0, on a double steal scoring JT Smith and Brynn Daniel’s RBI single.
The steals gave the Demons 60 stolen bases on the year, the most by a team in the past 20 years.
A six-run second featured a three-run Makynline Jones double, her ninth two-bagger of the season.
The Demons picked up two more runs in the third on a Mckenna Rinewalt RBI single and RBI groundout from Daniel. The Lions’ two runs came in the next half inning on back-to-back solo home runs, but the Demons broke things open in the bottom of the fourth to put the game away.
Aly Delafield and DJ Lynch hit back-to-back, one-out doubles for the first of the seven runs scored in the inning. Back-to-back hit batters again loaded the bases for Jones to draw the second of three bases-loaded walks for the Demons in the game.
Daniel clubbed a no-doubt grand slam to left, her first long ball of the season, pushing the lead to 14-2 in favor of NSU.
“Honestly in that at-bat I just said to myself ‘go have fun’,” Daniel said. “We had already scored a couple, so I went up there to have fun, not trying to hit a home run and just hit the ball hard. I had a pretty good weekend and seeing the ball well, so I saw my pitch and swung and I knew it was gone.”
The Demons scored six runs with the bases loaded in the bottom of the fourth of game three and 18 total runs with the bags full across the three-game series. All four hits with the bases loaded this weekend went for extra bases and drove in at least three runs.
Mattison Buster benefited from the offensive outpouring to earn her 14th win of the season, and 12th complete game of the season, both conference bests. The 14 wins tie her with Micaela Bouvier for the most by a Demon pitcher since 2018.
The Demons host Louisiana Tech Tuesday evening at 6, then play a Southland series Friday and Saturday at Stephen F. Austin.
THIBODAUX – When the Northwestern State baseball team needs a big swing in a road Southland Conference series, they call on Bryce Johnson.
Johnson’s go-ahead three-run home run in the eighth inning Sunday lifted the Demons to a 6-4 victory at Nicholls, giving Northwestern its second straight road conference series victory. Northwestern rolled 12-2 in Friday night’s series opener, then Nicholls came back Saturday night for a 9-8 win to even the series.
The outcome kept the Demons on top of the Southland standings with a 10-5 league record, sharing first with Lamar.
Sunday, Johnson’s third home run of the season came on the first pitch he saw from Owen Schexnaydre and was his second game-winning, three-run home run in Southland play, joining his 12th-inning blast in the series finale at UIW on March 7.
“I went up there with a clear mind and a clear head and saw it,” Johnson said. “I wasn’t sitting on his slider. I was sitting heater, saw it well and tried to put a good swing on it. I just wanted to have a good team AB (at-bat).”
The big swing – and Brooks Leonard’s ensuing RBI single that followed a Sam Ardoin single and stolen base – flipped the offensive script for the Demons (18-10overall), who did not score in six innings against Nicholls right-hander Haden Luke.
Luke scattered six hits while striking out 14 while the Colonels (14-15, 6-8) built a 3-0 lead.
Michael McAloose’s leadoff double in the seventh inning – his second two-bagger of the game — drove Luke from the game and opened the door to the Nicholls bullpen.
Once the Demons got into the Nicholls relief corps, the game shifted. After Peyton Lacy retired the first batter he faced, Johnson reached on catcher’s interference before Sam Ardoin singled home the first run of the inning. Joe Siervo’s sacrifice fly pulled the Demons within another run before Lacy escaped with a one-run lead in hand.
Mother Nature threatened the Demons’ momentum, forcing a 24-minute rain delay in the bottom of the seventh that drove Carter White from the game after facing just two batters.
Sophomore right-hander Wesley Marien (2-0) took over following the delay and recorded the final eight outs of the game, including a perfect eighth inning after the Demons took the lead. Marien followed six strong innings from Trent Hillen, who scattered six hits in six innings, allowing three runs to keep the Demons within striking distance.
“Proud of both of those guys for the way they came out and competed,” third-year head coach Chris Bertrand said. “Success, yes, obviously, but came out and competed. Proud of the way they responded. That was a huge response by Trent. The first couple of runs were somewhat self-inflicted by us. We gave up some free 90s that allowed them to be in that opportunistic situation. The fact he had a response, overall, a great performance from him.
“Wes, from the first pitch he threw until he got the last out, he was pressuring them, because he was throwing his best stuff in the strike zone, getting ahead of hitters – all of the things you want a bullpen arm with a two-run lead to come out and do.”
The four-run eighth inning gave Northwestern its fourth win when trailing after seven innings this season.
“We won a road series. We won against such a quality baseball team in a tough place to play. We came from behind and overcame the rain delay,” said Bertrand. “There are so many things we can take and use moving forward as long as we maintain the character and type of competitors we want to be.”
The Demons return to action Thursday night when they open a three-game Southland series at UT-Rio Grande Valley. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. at UTRGV Baseball Stadium.
Jonathan Parish of Natchitoches Magnet Junior High School has been named a semifinalist for Louisiana Teacher of the Year by the Louisiana Department of Education.
Parish, who has served at Natchitoches Magnet for nine years following three years in Sabine Parish, was recognized for his dedication to student success and strong academic performance in the classroom. He has consistently exceeded academic goals, with more than 90 percent of his students achieving proficiency in both social studies and English language arts on LEAP assessments.
School leadership praised Parish for his impact on students and commitment to excellence. Principal Antavious Roberson described him as an educator who fosters curiosity and ensures students meet their learning targets while continuing to grow alongside district initiatives.
Parish will represent Natchitoches Parish Schools at the state level as part of the semifinalist group. Finalists for Louisiana Teacher and Principal of the Year will be announced in May, with overall honorees recognized in July at the 20th Annual Cecil J. Picard Educator Excellence Gala.
The Louisiana Folklife Center at Northwestern State University will present a public concert by Gal Holiday and the Honky Tonk Revue on Tuesday, April 7 at 6 p.m. Natchitoches City Park at 401 Amulet Street in Natchitoches. The event is part of the Picnic in the Park series sponsored by the Natchitoches Parish Early Childhood Network and the Natchitoches Parish Library.
The event is free and open to the public. Call the Natchitoches Parish Library at (318) 238-9224 by March 30 to reserve your plate of a hot dog, chips, cookie and a drink.
Gal Holiday and the Honky Tonk Revue perform country, rockabilly and western swing music with songs dating back to the 1940s. They have played at numerous festivals, including the French Quarter Festival and the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Their awards include New Orleans’ based OffBeat Magazine’s 2010 Best Country/Folk Band and Best Country/Folk Album 2010 (both awards voted on by an international readership), and Best Country/Folk Band in both 2008 and 2009 from the Big Easy Awards. Their performance at Picnic in the Park will feature a mix of country, rockabilly and bluegrass music, with songs that will appeal to a younger audience.
The concert is a prelude to the 46th Natchitoches-NSU Folk Festival, which will be held in air-conditioned Prather Coliseum on the NSU campus on July 18. The day long Festival will feature folk crafts, food, the Louisiana State Fiddle Championship and three stages of music, with musicians such as Holiday, Kevin Naquin and the Ossun Playboys, Chris Breaux and Six String Rodeo and the Winnsboro Easter Rock Ensemble.
Support for the Festival is provided by grants from the Cane River National Heritage Area, Inc., the City of Natchitoches, the Louisiana Division of the Arts Decentralized Arts Fund Program, the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, the Natchitoches Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Natchitoches Historic District Development Commission, the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation and the Shreveport Regional Arts Council.
The views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this program will not necessarily represent those of the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities.
For more information, call the Louisiana Folklife Center at (318) 357-4332, email folklife@nsula.edu, or go to nsula.edu/folklife/.
BATON ROUGE — Louisiana’s public colleges and universities are operating nearly $850 million below what state funding levels would be if they had kept pace with inflation over the past decade, the state’s top higher education official told lawmakers this month as the 2026 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature got underway.
Commissioner of Higher Education Kim Hunter Reed presented the financial picture to legislative budget committees, attributing the growing gap to three consecutive years of standstill state budgets, rising athletics costs and demographic shifts that have reduced enrollment across most of the state’s public university systems, according to the Louisiana Illuminator.
“To fully fund higher education is an $850 million price tag, which I know this legislature does not have, but we do need to continue to invest in the education providers who are developing talent so there are more opportunities for our people,” Reed told lawmakers.
The $850 million shortfall exceeds the entire operating budget of LSU’s main campus in Baton Rouge, the Illuminator reported.
Gov. Jeff Landry, who took office in January 2024, has made no-growth budgeting a signature policy position. While state spending has held roughly flat for three years, inflation has effectively produced real-dollar cuts for agencies that rely on state appropriations — with higher education and health care constituting the two largest unprotected areas of the state budget.
The structural vulnerability of Louisiana higher education to budget pressures traces to the administration of Gov. Bobby Jindal, whose two terms from 2008 to 2016 produced some of the deepest higher education cuts in Louisiana history, according to the Illuminator. State aid to universities was reduced by more than 55 percent during that period, forcing campuses to shift the financial burden to students. Tuition and fees more than doubled at some institutions. Today, campus budgets are funded primarily through self-generated revenue rather than state appropriations.
Compounding the inflation problem is a rapid increase in athletics costs across the University of Louisiana System, where schools compete at the NCAA Division I level. Every college athletic program in Louisiana operates at a deficit except LSU, which recorded a profit of just over $28,000 in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025, according to financial disclosures reviewed by the Illuminator.
The University of Louisiana at Lafayette, the state’s only other public research university besides LSU, entered this fiscal year carrying a $25 million deficit — half of which was tied to athletics — along with $25 million in unpaid bills, the Illuminator reported. The university has reduced that shortfall but still faces $10.5 million in obligations due before June 30.
The University of New Orleans faces an even more uncertain path. Despite receiving more than $20 million in emergency legislative appropriations last year, UNO is being transferred from the University of Louisiana System to the LSU System while still carrying a significant deficit, according to the Illuminator. LSU leadership has begun discussing the potential closure or consolidation of programs at the New Orleans campus as part of a broader restructuring plan. The University of Louisiana at Monroe separately navigated a $12 million budget shortfall, choosing not to furlough employees, the Illuminator reported.
Reed characterized the converging pressures as a “perfect storm” for several institutions and told lawmakers that some universities may be forced to dramatically curtail their academic offerings if the legislature does not increase investment.
Lawmakers signaled limited appetite for new spending during budget hearings this week, with the phrase “live within your means” repeated throughout committee testimony, according to the Illuminator. Any new investment is expected to come in the form of one-time, targeted appropriations rather than recurring funding increases. Discussions of additional income tax reductions could further constrain state resources going forward.
The Louisiana Board of Regents has formally requested $119 million in additional general fund spending for fiscal year 2026-27 to partially address the shortfall — a fraction of the $850 million gap Reed described to lawmakers, according to the Illuminator.
For North and Central Louisiana’s regional universities, including those serving the 17-parish area of Northwest and Central Louisiana, the funding crisis carries direct consequences. Institutions that serve working-class and first-generation college students in communities with fewer higher education options have less capacity to absorb financial shocks. With enrollment declining and state support eroding, the gap between what the state’s universities need and what the legislature is prepared to provide shows no signs of closing in the current session.
Community representatives from Natchitoches Parish traveled to Baton Rouge on March 25 for Natchitoches Day at the Capitol, an annual event in which local officials and institutional leaders meet with state lawmakers and agency heads to push for investment and policy attention in the region.
The delegation of roughly 100 participants included representatives from Natchitoches Parish Government, the City of Natchitoches, Northwestern State University, Natchitoches Regional Medical Center, the Natchitoches Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, Cane River National Heritage Area, and the Natchitoches Parish Port. The group was organized by the Natchitoches Area Chamber of Commerce and its Regional Advocacy Committee.
The day opened with a breakfast in the Governor’s Press Room, where participants heard from a range of state officials including Senate President Cameron Henry, Secretary of State Nancy Landry, Governor Jeff Landry’s Chief of Staff Julie Emerson, Louisiana Economic Development representatives Rachel Shields and Chris Stelly, DOTD Deputy Secretary Beau Black, Chief Deputy Attorney General Larry Frieman, and legislators representing the Natchitoches area — Sen. Alan Seabaugh and Reps. Gabe Firment and Jason DeWitt. Attendees also observed legislative committee hearings during the morning session.
A midday reception, billed as the Cane River Calling lunch, was held in the Pentagon Barracks Courtyard at the invitation of Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser. The event drew approximately 150 guests and centered on six policy areas the delegation is prioritizing in the current legislative session: business and industry development, infrastructure, education, healthcare, tourism, and the region’s history and cultural assets. Entertainment was provided by the LaCour Trio Zydeco Band; catering came from Lasyone’s, the Natchitoches meat pie institution.
In the afternoon, members of the Natchitoches delegation were recognized on the House floor. The House presented resolutions honoring restaurateur Angela Lasyone and musician Katrice LaCour for their cultural contributions to the region. A memorial resolution was also introduced recognizing the late Northwestern State University football coach Sam Goodwin. The Louisiana Senate formally recognized the delegation in the Capitol Rotunda before convening its afternoon session.
By Reba Phelps
One of my favorite pastimes while sitting in traffic is watching vehicles go by with a dog in the passenger seat, backseat, in the bed of a truck or sometimes even sitting on a dashboard. There’s just something special about the confidence in a dog‘s face when they’re riding in a vehicle. In my mind, it’s like they have evened the playing field. For a brief moment in time, they are one of us. They are in a vehicle, and they are riding off into a wild adventure on the open road. Every doggy that I see all have a common thread. They all look so immensely happy and as if no one or nothing will ever steal their joy. They look like the happiest dogs to ever live.
Even more fun to watch is the type of dog who vivaciously runs from window to window, backseat to front seat…. they just cannot wait to see what lies outside of the next window. They just want to take it all in. The best pet owners have the windows rolled down for maximum viewing pleasure, and so they can poke their head out and their let tongues and ears wag in the wind. The dog owners who faithfully carry their dogs with them will have windows with permanent lick spots on the glass or signs of muddy paw marks that are haphazardly embedded in the glass. All signals of a happiest dog on board.
It’s almost as if the dogs truly don’t care where they’re going, they are just enjoying the ride. It often breaks my heart while wondering if thier countenance changes when they actually pull up to the veternarian’s office. I can only imagine that is a buzz kill for the K-9’s who thought they were on a joy ride.
Sometimes while watching the happiest dogs, I wish for a just a tiny morsel of their energy and starry-eyed optimism. As Christians, this is the type of delight and confidence we should have when we think about the future that God has planned for us. Even when life takes us on a detour to the vet’s office, we should be eager to see what he has in store for us. God promises his children that he has plans for them and they are good plans and they are not plans to harm you. We should look like these happy dogs running to the proverbial window just to see what God is doing. Next time anxiety hits deep because we don’t know where the road is leading us, close your eyes, take a deep breath and run to the next window.
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you; plans to give you a hope and a future.”
Jeremiah 29:11
Reba Phelps jreba.phelps@gmail.com
Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge hosted the release of juvenile alligator snapping turtles March 24, marking the latest step in a collaborative conservation effort.
Staff from the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and the Natchitoches National Fish Hatchery worked together on the initiative, which also included support from the University of Louisiana Monroe.
Five juvenile turtles were released into Black Bayou Lake during the event, following a larger release conducted earlier. The effort represents the conclusion of a unique program focused on supporting and strengthening the population of the species.
Prior to the release, refuge staff shared the experience with visiting families, giving children the opportunity to see the young turtles up close and learn more about local conservation efforts.
Officials say the project highlights the importance of partnerships in preserving Louisiana’s native wildlife and ecosystems.
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Area athletes showcased strength and determination at the 2026 LHSPLA State Powerlifting Meet, with multiple competitors earning top placements in their respective divisions.
Ady Rhodes recorded a 590-pound total to finish fifth in her division, while Rayanna Norsworthy followed closely with a 600-pound total, placing sixth and completing a perfect 9-for-9 performance across all lifts.
Alyssa Brewton led the group with a standout performance, securing second place in the lightweight division with a total of 745 pounds.
The meet highlighted the athletes’ preparation, discipline and competitive drive as they stepped onto the platform to represent their school and community at the state level.
The Northwestern State track and tennis teams, both defending Southland Conference champions, are in action at home on campus Saturday, with the Leon Johnson NSU Invitational track meet providing that program with its only on-campus competition of the year.
TENNIS: The Jack Fisher Tennis Complex is the setting for a key Southland Conference matchup pitting Northwestern against Stephen F. Austin in a meeting of two of the three tri-champions from the 2025 women’s tennis season.
Doubles play is set to begin at 1 o’clock Saturday afternoon, followed by six singles matches.
The Lady Demons (9–5 overall, 5–1 in the SLC) split a pair of road matches against two of the league’s better teams.
Northwestern dropped a 4–3 decision at McNeese, now the only unbeaten team left in the conference race, before bouncing back with a 4–3 victory Monday over Southeastern Louisiana, once again showing its ability to respond under pressure.
“The girls have handled adversity with a lot of character,” head coach Marcos Morelli said. “That’s been a big part of our success in those close matches.”
Against Southeastern, Honoka Umeda delivered the decisive point at No. 1 singles, rallying from a set down to secure the match-clinching win. Maria Farina and Lolita Hukasian provided dominant straight-set victories early in singles play, helping shift momentum after the Lady Demons dropped the doubles point.
Saturday’s matchup presents both a challenge and a familiar storyline.
Stephen F. Austin (5–7, 4–2) is coming off a split weekend, defeating Southeastern 5–2 before falling to McNeese 5–2 in Lake Charles.
The matchup also carries added significance from last season.
Stephen F. Austin defeated Northwestern State 4–3 on April 19 last year, a result that prevented the Demons from claiming the outright Southland Conference regular season championship and instead created a three-way tie for the title.
The NSU coach relishes the homecourt advantage Saturday.
“Playing at home with our crowd is great,” Morelli said. “We enjoy seeing our community out there supporting us.”
TRACK & FIELD: The Demons and Lady Demons have been showing up and showing out indoors and outdoors in 2026 and finally get to compete in front of the home crowd Saturday. Field events begin at 10 a.m. (women’s discus) with running starting at 2:30 (women’s steeplechase) at the Walter P. Ledet Track Complex.
A new Mondo track oval headlines the extensive renovations to the facility, giving NSU one of the world’s fastest tracks. Mondo, based in Italy, installs the Olympic Games tracks.
The 2:30 start for racing is later than ever because of the new lights at the Ledet Complex, allowing competition to finish in the twilight or later. Another enhancement for fans is the new videoboard.
Thirty seniors get their last NSU home meet showcase.
Among them is Sileena Farrell, who once again had a tremendous showing at the Louisiana Classics, as her time of 11.47 in the 100-meter dash is not only the top mark in the Southland so far during the young outdoor season, but also fourth in the South Central Region and 18th in the nation.
Not only did she win that event, but she was also a part of the 4×100 relay team that won the event with a 44.95, which is 25th nationally.
Farrell is also one of six seniors being honored who have spent their entire career at NSU, a group that includes men’s sprinter Desmond Duncan, who has had an impressive senior season thus far.
Duncan has been one of the program’s more improved athletes during his time in Natchitoches.
That improvement helped him earn two trips to the podium in the indoor conference meet last month. As a part of the 4×400 relay team, he took home a silver, and then as an individual, he claimed the bronze in the 400-meter dash, his first individual medal of his career.
Farrell, Duncan and the rest of the seniors are being recognized prior to the 4×400 relay, which takes place at 5:45.
For the event schedule, visit NSUDemons.com online.
Each week the Northwestern State softball program continues to take steps forward in its rebuild. The Lady Demons look to take another this week hosting East Texas A&M in a three-game series beginning today at the Demon Diamond.
The fourth conference series of the year begins with a 4 p.m. doubleheader and concludes with a noon first pitch on Saturday. All three games will air on ESPN+ with the opener today and the finale on Saturday also available locally in Natchitoches on 100.7 KZBL FM.
Today’s doubleheader opener will serve as NSU softball’s annual Fork Cancer game, with special guests scheduled to throw out the ceremonial first pitch prior to the series opener. Saturday’s finale is Fan Appreciation Day, with games and giveaways planned before and during the contest.
Northwestern (14-18 overall, 4-5 in the SLC) enters the weekend looking to turn a pair of close loses on the road with conference-leading Southeastern into wins at home against a different set of Lions (6-28, 1-8) from the conference.
“It’s always painful to lose games like that because we want to win but I think we played really well against them on the road which was promising,” head coach Jenny Fuller said. “We really only had one bad inning against them and played really good ball the rest of the series. Not into moral victories but it was another step in the right direction for us.”
The Demons stranded eight runners in the opener and 10 in the finale against the Lady Lions, the most left on base in a single game this season.
JT Smith has continued to be the spark at the top of the NSU lineup, riding her recent hot streak to a team-best .337 batting average. She is reaching base in nearly half of her plate appearances with a .492 on-base percentage, the second-highest mark in the Southland.
East Texas A&M arrives in Natchitoches looking to snap a four-game skid after being swept by Lamar last weekend and falling 8-6 to Grambling in midweek action. The Lions have dropped 24 of their last 25 games, with their lone win in that stretch coming during the second conference weekend at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
East Texas A&M has used seven different pitchers and enters the weekend with a staff ERA above 8.50 while opponents are batting .368 and scoring an average of 8.8 runs per game.
BASEBALL: In Thibodaux, the Demons open the first of back-to-back Southland Conference road weekend series tonight at 6 at Nicholls, extending a run of hometown returns for Northwestern. The series also includes a 6 p.m. Saturday matchup and a 1 p.m. Sunday matinee series finale. All three games will air on ESPN+ with free streaming audio available on www.NSUDemons.com and through the Northwestern State athletics mobile app, which can be downloaded free for Apple and Android devices.
Northwestern (16-9 overall, a league-leading 8-4 in the SLC) extended its winning streak to three games Tuesday night with a 5-0 victory at ULM, which served as a return home for first baseman Thomas Marsala III, who homered and drove in two runs in the game.
“We talk about learning life lessons,” third-year head coach Chris Bertrand said. “We talk about pulling value from every moment in every situation. We talk about teammates making each other better. That’s the impact of a great team is that you have great players, but sometimes it’s overlooked that great players are not just found in the numbers. They’re found in how they can make others around them better and how others around them can learn. That’s definitely something we want to do.
“We’re going to learn from Thomas’ experience. We’re going to learn from what a chance that Brooks Leonard and (Trent) Hillen and Brody (Trosclair) and all of those guys get a chance to do this weekend, and we’re pretty confident that we know it’s going to happen on down the line.”
Freshman left-hander Brody Trosclair (3-1), a Thibodaux native, will make his third straight series-opening start and will do so in his hometown. Right-hander Trent Hillen (2-1), set to start Sunday’s series finale, returns to the place he began his collegiate career.
Brooks Leonard, who has hit .348 and scored 16 runs in 16 games as Northwestern’s leadoff hitter, and his twin brother, Bryce, will play in the closest Division I ballpark to their hometown of Pierre Part, which is 38 miles from Ben Meyer Diamond at Ray E. Didier Field.
Friday will mark Trosclair’s first road start of his career after moving into the rotation for the Demons’ home series against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
Northwestern took its first road series of league play three weeks ago at Incarnate Word, winning two of three games in an extremely offensive environment.
That likely will not be the case this weekend.
Northwestern and Nicholls (13-13, 5-6) enter the weekend with two of the top pitching staffs in the Southland Conference.
The Demons lead the league in ERA (3.81) while Nicholls (4.93) ranks third. Nicholls leads the league in fewest hits per nine innings allowed (7.91) while the Demons rank second (7.94). The Colonels have struck out 273 hitters, second in the league, while the Demons rank third with 249.
After leading Northwestern State to a 2025 WNIT appearance and the most Southland Conference wins in 22 seasons this past year, head coach Anna Nimz has resigned her position to take over at North Alabama, NSU athletics director Kevin Bostian confirmed Thursday morning.
“Coach Nimz came to Natchitoches in a very uncertain time, sight unseen, and had a plan to build the program in her image,” Bostian said. “In her six years, she did just that, helping steer our program back to a position where it is on an upward trajectory within the Southland Conference, including the program’s most conference wins in 22 seasons. She leaves the program poised to continue on that track. We want to wish Anna, (wife and associate head coach) Leasa and (pre-school child) Frankie the best as they enter their next chapter at North Alabama.
“We have begun the reach for the next coach — someone who can sustain the momentum that has been crafted across the past six seasons.”
In her six seasons at NSU, Nimz compiled a record of 69-100, but in the past two seasons, she led the Lady Demons to a 34-30 mark, including a 26-16 mark in league play. Those two seasons also included the program’s first postseason berth last year and its first overall winning record since 2015-16 this season.
In 2024-25, she produced the program’s first WNIT berth since 1999 and a 16-16 record. This past season, she did even better, leading NSU to an 18-14 mark and 14-8 record in league competition, the highest win total in SLC play in 22 years.
This past season, NSU gave conference champion McNeese its only SLC loss, a 64-59 win in Lake Charles.
Nimz came to NSU during the COVID-19 pandemic and inherited a team that went 7-22 the year before and had to recruit a brand-new roster. In her first year, the Demons went 1-19, and Nimz earned her first victory against Central Arkansas in the season finale.
Two players during that recruiting class following the 1-win season — Jasmin Dixon and Sharna Ayres — were pillars of the turnaround, starting on the WNIT team as seniors, and leading them to the SLC Tournament quarterfinals.
The Kiwanis Club of Natchitoches welcomed Micah Coleman, principal of Natchitoches Central High School, as the featured speaker during its March 26 meeting, where he shared updates on the school’s continued progress and achievements.
Coleman highlighted the school’s recent “A” rating, reflecting the collective efforts of students, teachers and staff in maintaining a strong academic environment. He also recognized his team’s commitment to student success and growth.
During the presentation, attendees heard about ongoing improvements across Natchitoches Parish schools, including rising ACT scores and grade point averages. Coleman also emphasized the school’s focus on preparing students for a variety of post-graduation paths, including four-year universities, trade schools and workforce entry.
Club members noted the positive trajectory of Natchitoches Central High School and its impact on the community’s educational landscape.
Those pictured at the meeting included Mike Stewart, Tiffany Woods, Micah Coleman and Don Barker.
The Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and Northwest Louisiana History Museum will host its next Lunchtime Lagniappe program on Friday, April 17 highlighting the impact of Louisiana women during World War I and World War II.
Titled “Going to miss this Navy life… Louisiana Women in WWI & WWII,” the program will feature local historian Kevin Shannahan, who will present on the lives of several Louisiana women whose service during the wars helped shape both their futures and broader societal change.
Organizers note that the World Wars brought significant transformation to American society, influencing movements such as civil rights and women’s rights, with many modern-day freedoms tracing their roots to that era.
The event is free and open to the public and will take place from 12:15 to 1 p.m. at the museum, located at 800 Front Street in Natchitoches.
For more information, the public can visit the museum’s Facebook page or call 318-357-2492.