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BOONEVILLE – The Hinds Community College Eagles grabbed the 18-13 win over Northeast Mississippi Community College Thursday evening.
 
This win was a direct result of the four turnovers by the Eagle defense and the 10 points contributed by freshman placekicker Ben Duncan (Florence).
 
"The key to the game was our four turnovers," defensive coordinator John Hendrick said. "We still need to work on limiting big plays and tackling better as the season progresses," Hendrick said.
 
After the opening drive for the Eagles stalled, sophomore punter Houston Smith (Flowood) pinned the Tiger offense at their own two-yard line.
 
A few plays later, the Eagle defense forced a Northeast safety, giving Hinds the 2-0 lead early in the game. Stefon Smith (Indianola) came up with the sack in the endzone.
 
Getting great field position on the ensuing kickoff, the Eagle offense went to work, going 10 plays for 79 yards. The drive ended with a 10-yard touchdown throw from BeSean McCray (Orlando, Fla) to Jaiden Burns (Canton) to give the Eagles a 9-0 lead.
 
Northeast later drove deep into Eagle territory, capping off the drive with a 12-yard touchdown pass to bring the score to 9-7.
 
The next possession, the Eagle offense stalled, giving the ball back to Northeast.
 
Several plays later, Treyvon Gibson (Benoit) recorded the Eagle defense's first interception of the season. The Eagles got the ball back with prime field position.
 
Ben Duncan was called out to attempt a 25-yard field goal to extend the Eagle lead. Duncan split the uprights to give Hinds the 12-7 lead with 10:46 left in the first half.
 
Taking significant time off the clock, the Tigers drove deep into Eagle territory. Faced with a fourth and two, the Eagle defense got the turnover on downs, giving the ball back to the offense with 4:06 to play in the half.
 
The half ended when Ben Duncan missed a field goal, leaving Hinds with a 12-7 lead at the break.
 
Northeast received the ball to start the second half, but their drive stalled on their 38-yard line. Hinds then went 14 plays for 64 yards, capped off by a Ben Duncan 27-yard field goal. This field goal was Duncan's second of the evening.
 
On the ensuing possession, Northeast scored on a 14-yard pass, but they couldn't convert the two-point conversion. The Eagles were up 15-13 with 3:42 left in the third quarter.
 
With 8:23 left in the contest, Khiry Gee (Starkville) recorded his first interception of the season and returned it to the Northeast 23-yard line.
 
Ben Duncan then cashed in his third field goal of the game from 32 yards out, giving the Eagles the 18-13 lead with 5:29 left in the game.
 
On the next possession, Khiry Gee got his second interception of the game, returning it for 18 yards.
 
The game came down to the final drive by Northeast. The Tigers drove deep into Eagle territory on five consecutive completions. After an Eagle pass-interference, Northeast had the ball at the one-yard line.
 
At the 1:20 mark, the Eagles stepped up when it mattered and recovered the Northeast fumble. Jaylen Knight (Hattiesburg) came up with the ball.
 
The Eagles went into the victory formation and put the game on ice.
 
Up next for the Eagles is a home contest against Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. The game is set to kick off at 6:30 p.m. at Joe Renfroe Stadium in Raymond. Make plans to join us next game as we honor former head coach Gene Murphy before the game and at halftime.
 
Fans will be able to watch Hinds football games live here: https://hindsccsports.net/channel-1/
 
You can also follow @HindsCC_FB for live in-game updates.