Prather Coliseum

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Prather Coliseum
Prather Coliseum (Natchitoches, LA).jpg
Prather Coliseum
Location220 S. Jefferson St., Natchitoches, LA 71457
Coordinates 31°44′38.5″N93°05′42.6″W / 31.744028°N 93.095167°W / 31.744028; -93.095167 Coordinates: 31°44′38.5″N93°05′42.6″W / 31.744028°N 93.095167°W / 31.744028; -93.095167
Owner Northwestern State University
OperatorNorthwestern State University
Capacity 3,900
SurfaceMulti-surface
Opened1964
Tenants
Northwestern State Demons basketball
Northwestern State Lady Demons basketball
Northwestern State Lady Demons volleyball

Prather Coliseum is a 3,900-seat multi-purpose arena in Natchitoches, Louisiana, United States. It opened in 1964 and is home to the Northwestern State University Demons basketball team. [1] The arena also holds concerts and events. It was named in honor of the school's most successful basketball and football coach, H. Lee Prather, who served from the 1910s through the 1940s before becoming NSU President in 1951.

Contents

History

The coliseum is among projects credited to the late State Senator Sylvan Friedman of Natchitoches Parish. It opened two years before Friedman's retirement. [2]

Prather Coliseum is also known as the venue for the final concert performed by rock star Jim Croce on Thursday, September 20, 1973. Shortly after the concert, Croce's plane crashed shortly after takeoff from Natchitoches Regional Airport, killing him and all others aboard the plane. [3]

The arena hosted the Southland Conference men's basketball tournament in 2005–06. [4] Loyola University New Orleans women's basketball player Keiva Council set the single-game scoring record in the building with 48 points in an 84–80 Wolfpack victory over Northwestern State on November 25, 2011.

See also

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The 2013–14 Northwestern State Demons basketball team represented Northwestern State University during the 2013–14 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Demons, led by 15th year head coach Mike McConathy, played their home games at Prather Coliseum and were members of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 17–4, 12–6 in Southland play to finish in fourth place. They advanced to the semifinals of the Southland Conference Tournament where they lost to Stephen F. Austin.

The 2013–14 Northwestern State Lady Demons basketball team represented Northwestern State University during the 2013–14 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Demons, led by second year co-head coaches Brooke Stoehr and Scott Stoehr, played their home games at Prather Coliseum and are members of the Southland Conference. As champions of the 2014 Southland Conference Women's Basketball Tournament, the Lady Demons received the conference automatic bid to the 2014 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament.

The 2014–15 Northwestern State Lady Demons basketball team represented Northwestern State University during the 2014–15 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Demons, led by third year co-head coaches Brooke Stoehr and Scott Stoehr, played their home games at Prather Coliseum and were members of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 19–15, 10–8 in Southland play for a tie for a sixth-place finish. They were champions of the Southland Women's Basketball Tournament and received an automatic to the 2015 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament. They lost to Baylor in the first round.

Lady Demon Diamond

Lady Demon Diamond is the home stadium for the Northwestern State Lady Demons softball team. Located across the street from Prather Coliseum on the campus of Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, Louisiana, the stadium features seating for 1,000 fans. Included in the 1,000 seat capacity is a combination of partially covered chairback and bleacher seats. The Outfield Club, located outside of the left field fence, provides additional bleacher seating. The stadium has field lighting, bullpens, dugouts, and a press box.

The 2015–16 Northwestern State Demons basketball team represented Northwestern State University during the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Demons, led by 17th year head coach Mike McConathy, played their home games at Prather Coliseum and were members of the Southland Conference. They finished the season with a record of 8–20, 5–13 to finish 12th place in conference. As a result, they failed to qualify for the Southland Tournament.

The 2016–17 Northwestern State Demons basketball team represented Northwestern State University during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Demons, led by 18th-year head coach Mike McConathy, played their home games at Prather Coliseum in Natchitoches, Louisiana as members of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 13–16, 7–11 in Southland play to finish in a five-way tie for eighth place. They failed to qualify for the Southland Tournament.

The 2017–18 Northwestern State Demons basketball team represented Northwestern State University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Demons, led by 19th-year head coach Mike McConathy, played their home games at Prather Coliseum in Natchitoches, Louisiana as members of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 4–25, 1–17 in Southland play to finish in last place. They failed to qualify for the Southland Tournament.

The 2017–18 Northwestern State Lady Demons basketball team represented Northwestern State University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Demons, led by second year head coach Jordan Dupuy, played their home games at Prather Coliseum and were members of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 7–22, 2–16 in Southland play to finish in twelfth place. They failed to qualify for the Southland Women's Tournament.

The 2018–19 Northwestern State Demons basketball team represented Northwestern State University during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Demons, led by 20th-year head coach Mike McConathy, played their home games at Prather Coliseum in Natchitoches, Louisiana as members of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 11–20 overall, 6–12 in Southland play to finish in 11th place. Since only the top eight teams are eligible for the Southland Tournament, Northwestern State failed to qualify this season.

The 2018–19 Northwestern State Lady Demons basketball team will represent Northwestern State University during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Demons, led by third year head coach Jordan Dupuy, will play their home games at Prather Coliseum and were members of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 11–18, 6–12 in Southland play to finish in eighth place. Due to a tie breaker loss to New Orleans they failed to qualify for the Southland Women's Tournament.

The 2019–20 Northwestern State Demons basketball team represented Northwestern State University in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Demons, led by 21st-year head coach Mike McConathy, played their home games at Prather Coliseum in Natchitoches, Louisiana as members of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 15–15, 11–9 in Southland play to finish in a tie for fourth place. They defeated Texas A&M–Corpus Christi in the first round of the Southland Tournament and were set to take on Sam Houston State in the second round until the tournament was cancelled amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2019–20 Northwestern State Lady Demons basketball team represents Northwestern State University during the 2019–20 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Demons, led by interim head coach Aaron Swinson, who took over for Jordan Dupuy following the latter's resignation on January 26, 2020, play their home games at Prather Coliseum and are members of the Southland Conference.

References

  1. Prather Coliseum Archived 2011-09-27 at the Wayback Machine at nsudemons.com, URL accessed November 17, 2009. Archived [ dead link ] 11/17/09
  2. Friedman Student Union at facilityuse.nsula.edu, URL accessed November 17, 2009. Archived 11/17/09
  3. Jim Croce Archived 2009-11-18 at WebCite at vegasvalleycomputers.biz, URL accessed November 17, 2009. Archived 11/17/09
  4. Northwestern State Wins Men's O'Reilly Auto Parts/SLC Tournament Title at southland.org, URL accessed November 17, 2009. Archived 11/17/2009