HAMMOND, La. _ After a couple of first-quarter miscues, the University of Central Arkansas Bears looked every bit like a first-place team in cruising to a 45-10 victory over the Southeastern Louisiana Lions on Saturday at Strawberry Stadium.

    The No. 18/19 Bears (7-1, 6-0) won their sixth consecutive game and moved into a first-place tie with Sam Houston State in the Southland Conference standings. 

    The Bears finished with 495 yards of total offense and forced the Lions (4-4, 4-2) into four turnovers. SLU had won three consecutive Southland games entering Saturday's contest and sat in third place in the league, just behind the Bears. 

    "I'm more pleased after this one than I have been in a couple of weeks,' said UCA head coach Steve Campbell. "This was a good football team. They've been to the playoffs two of the last four years. They've got good tradition. Since (head coach) Ron (Roberts) has been here, he's done a tremendous job. They've got a lot of real good players. They've got some guys over there, they've got some dudes.'

    The Bears survived two first-quarter errors and came back to score 24 points in the second period and more or less put the game away. UCA's Jacob Sisk forced a fumble on the opening kickoff and the Bears took over at the SLU 26. But after three plays netted just six yards, Matt Cummins hit the left upright on a 34-yard field goal attempt. The Bears' defense forced a SLU punt and UCA drove 92 yards in 13 plays but was stopped on fourth and goal from the 1.

    "That's kind of been our M.O.,' Campbell said of the slow start. "If we hadn't done that earlier in the year and overcome it, I would have been very concerned. But sooner or later, we normally get stuff figured out. And we were able to figure some stuff out and make some plays and get in the end zone. 

    "We gave up some points that we need to get. We missed a field goal, we went for it on fourth and one, so there's 10 points. But then that great play by Cody Dauksch and Hayden (Hildebrand), I figure we got back seven. Tyler Williams got us back seven. With Jakari Dillard, we got back seven.'
 
    Three first-half turnovers by the Lions, two interceptions and a fumble, helped the Bears to a 24-3 halftime lead. After the scoreless first quarter, the Bears got on the board first with a 12-play, 69-yard drive, capped by a 4-yard keeper by junior quarterback Hildebrand. Cummins made it 7-0 with the point after at the 13:16 mark of the second quarter.

    Cummins then made it a 10-0 lead with a 47-yard field goal, tying for the second longest of his career. The Lions took over after the kickoff and on their third play from scrimmage, UCA senior cornerback Tyler Williams intercepted Justin Alo's pass at the 32 and weaved his way to the end zone for a 17-0 advantage with 8:56 left in the half.

    After the Lions got a 31-yard field goal from Jonathan Tatum, the Bears turned another turnover into points. Junior cornerback Tre Smith intercepted Alo at the SLU 38. Seven plays later, Hildebrand hit a sliding Cody Dauksch with a 7-yard touchdown pass with 11 seconds on the clock to give the Bears a 24-3 halftime cushion.

    Hildebrand, a junior from Bossier City, completed 15 of 17 passes for 138 yards in the opening half and finished 21 of 27 for 207 yards and three touchdowns on the day. 



    The Bears stretched their lead to 38-3 in the third quarter with a 6-yard pass from Hildebrand to senior tight end Scott Matiaha and a 7-yarder to senior wide receiver Desmond Smith. The first capped a 14-play, 69-yard drive that took 6:36 off the clock. The second came after yet another SLU turnover, this time a forced fumble by junior linebacker Chris Chambers and recovery by senior tackle Jordan Toliver. 

    The Lions took advantage of a UCA miscue late in the third quarter when Patrick Ponder's punt was blocked by SLU's Kijuan Lee and returned 25 yards for a touchdown by Jacorey Fuller. The Lions followed with a successful onside kick but UCA held on downs and got the ball back. Junior running back Jarvis Cooper broke loose for 17 yards before fumbling at the SLU 7. Sophomore receiver Jakari Dillard fell on the ball in the end zone for UCA to make it 45-10 with 11:15 to play.

    UCA used six running backs, led by junior Jarvis Cooper with 69 yards on 10 carries. Ten different players caught passes, including six by senior Jatavious Wilson. The Bears rushed for 288 yards, their second best output of the season.

    "These guys show you so many different looks,' Campbell said, "we felt like we needed to show them some different looks and make them have to line up to some different things. (Offensive coordinator) Nathan (Brown) did a great job of calling the game. We got the tight ends involved. Cody scored a touchdown and Scotty scored a touchdown. We had to utilize a lot of different weapons because I have a lot of respect for these guys.'



    UCA's defense, which entered the game leading nation against the rush, allowed 78 yards on 26 carries and recorded seven lost-yardage plays. SLU quarterbacks Justin Alo and D'Shaie Landor combined to complete 7 of 19 passes for 83 yards, with two interceptions and no touchdowns. UCA sophomore defensive end Chris Terrell recorded three of UCA's six tackles for loss.

    The Bears are on the road against next Saturday, facing Stephen F. Austin in Nacogdoches, Texas. Kickoff is 2:30 p.m. on American Sports Network.