Press release from LSU Eunice, courtesy of Travis Webb, Assistant Director of Public Relations/Project Manager.

EUNICE, La. - LSU Eunice announces it will be adding three more sports to its varsity sports roster.  Beginning in the 2018-2019 academic school year, the Bengals will field a men's basketball team as well as men's and women's soccer.

The additions bring the total number of varsity athletics to six.  LSUE competes in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) and are members of Region 23, comprising of schools in Louisiana and Mississippi.

"These new teams will provide additional opportunities for greater student involvement and impact on campus," LSU Eunice Chancellor Dr. Kimberly Russell said.  "In addition, LSUE will partner with local and regional youth sports leagues for area children to become part of recreational athletic teams, participate in a wide-variety of sports camps, and to help develop a passion for fitness-related activites."

"We are extremely excited to be adding opportunities for students to play NJCAA athletics on our campus at LSU Eunice," LSUE athletic director Jeff Willis added.  "Thanks to the quality of high school programs in our region and the state of Louisiana, we believe we can be very competitive in men's and women's soccer as well as men's basketball."

LSU Eunice is currently home to three NJCAA athletic programs: women's basketball, softball and baseball.  The Bengals have won ten combined National Championships, five each in softball and baseball.

A national search for head coaches and staff for all three new athletic programs will begin effective immediately.

Men's basketball will be a welcomed addition to the HPRE Center.  The greater Acadiana region is a hotbed of high school basketball talent and the Bengals will be a new outlet to showcase what the area has to offer.  LSUE now joins the 19 other schools in Region 23 to field both a men's and women's basketball team.

The birth of soccer programs on campus will bring a sport entirely to campus.  The men's and women's teams will become one of 11 schools currently playing in NJCAA Region 23.

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