CONWAY, Ark. _ The University of Central Arkansas' defense outplayed the best defense in the Southland Conference on Saturday night in a battle for first place in the Southland Conference.

    The Bears held No. 9 McNeese State to just 160 yards of total offense but two costly turnovers late in the game allowed the Cowboys to escape with a 28-13 victory at First Security Field at Estes Stadium.

    MSU (6-0, 5-0) entered the game with the league's top defensive unit, one allowing just 6.8 points and 243.8 points a game, But the Bears (3-3, 3-1) put up 313 yards of offense, the second-most allowed by the Cowboys this season, and finished with 268 passing yards. Sophomore quarterback Hayden Hildebrand completed 29 of 51 passes for 261 yards, with the attempts and completions both career highs. Senior wide receiver Desmond Smith had career highs of 12 receptions and 159 yards.

    UCA's defense finished with better numbers than McNeese, holding the Cowboys to just 47 yards on 32 offensive plays in the first half. The Bears recorded seven lost-yardage plays and forced a pair of turnovers. MSU quarterback Daniel Sams, a transfer from Kansas State, finished 9 of 23 passing for just 60 yards and an interception. Ryan Ross did rush for 100 yards but the Cowboys averaged just 2.6 yards per play on the night.

    The teams traded punts for most of the first half, 13 combined, with UCA losing a fumble and McNeese coughing up a fumble and an interception. UCA took advantage of that fumble deep in MSU terriroty to get on the board with a 42-yard field goal from senior Jace Denker with 3:13 left in the half. 

    The Cowboys grabbed their first lead of the game on a 1-yard run by quarterback Sams with 12:22 left in the third quarter, capping a 3-play, 46-yard drive. UCA responded with a 12-play, 78-yard drive that sophomore running back Dominique Thomas finished off with a 1-yard run at the 6:42 mark of the third quarter to give the Bears a 10-7 lead.

    Denker stretched that margin to 13-7 with a 44-yard field goal with 3:13 left in the third period. McNeese did the remainder of the scoring, all in the fourth quarter, to win its second straight game against UCA and take a 5-4 overall series lead.



    Safety Wallace Scott returned a fumbled snap 45 yards for a touchdown and a 14-13 lead in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter. The Cowboys took over at midfield on their next possession and drove 46 yards in seven plays, ending with a 10-yard Ryan Ross run for a 21-13 advantage with 9:47 to play. Hildebrand exited with and injury and backup quarterback Kirk Baugh fumbled after a sack and McNeese took over on the UCA 16. 

    Daniel Ryan scored from the 2 with 6:56 remainining to put the Bears in a 28-13 hole.

    Hildebrand returned and marched the Bears down the field but UCA turned it over on downs. After holding the Cowboys to a three-and-out, Hildebrand took over again, connecting with Smith on five consecutive passes into MSU territory before and interception by Jake Grode ended the drive.

    UCA junior safety Devin Spurlock led the defensive charge with nine tackles, including one for loss. Senior linebacker Ricky Wyatt had three tackles for loss and a sack among his six tackles. Sophomore cornerback Tremon Smith picked off his team-high third pass of the season and also forced a fumble that was recovered by linebacker Garrett Sharp, setting up the only score of the first half.

    Junior Jatavious Wilson caught seven passes for 56 yards and Thomas finished with 64 yards on 19 carries with a touchdown.

    The Bears return to the road next week to take on the Lamar Cardinals, a 48-35 loser to previously winless Northwestern State on Saturday. Kickoff is 6 p.m. from Beaumont, Texas.