NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State University’s College of Business and Technology announces the finalists in the 2025 Inferno Pitch competition. NSU’s Inferno Pitch is a platform for student entrepreneurs to showcase their innovative ideas and compete for prizes and industry recognition.
2025 Inferno Pitch Finalists are as follows.
Team 1 – Santiago Tobon Cardona of Pereira, Colombia
Team 2 – David Jordan of Alexandria
Team 3 – Valeria Mendieta Montoya of Pereira, Colombia
Team 4 – Angee Mariana Bedoya Rivera (team leader) of Natchitoches, Katherine Clary of DeRidder and Maria Camila Valencia Gonzalez of Pereira, Colombia
Team 5 – Layla Theriot (team leader) of Gheens and Colton Wood of Ragley
The Final Pitch will take place from 9:30 a.m.-noon Wednesday, Nov. 12 in the David Morgan Auditorium (Room 107) in Russell Hall. The public is invited to attend.
Guest Judges will be Frances Buffin, human tesources administrator for the Biomedical Research Foundation (BRF); Leslie Oglesby, manager of economic development and research at the Natchitoches Area Chamber of Commerce; Joanna Washington, vice president and senior deposit operation specialist of City Bank & Trust Company, and Matthew Gamble, entrepreneur, co-founder of Collins & Gamble, Winner of 2023 Pelican Cup.
During the final pitch event, each finalist will pitch their business models to a panel of judges. Each finalist will be allowed 10 minutes to present, followed by a 5-minute Q&A session. The winner(s) will be announced and awarded the following prizes.
- 1st Place – $3,000 cash, 6 months of professional services from the Entrepreneurial Accelerator Program
- 2nd Place – $1,000 cash, 6 months of professional services from the Entrepreneurial Accelerator Program
- 3rd Place – $500 cash, 6 months of professional services from the Entrepreneurial Accelerator Program.
The Final Pitch will live-streamed via Webex at: www.nsu.la/FinalPitch25.
Meeting number:2495 800 3692
Password: HottestIdea25!
Viewers can also join by video system:
Dial 24958003692@nsula.webex.com
You can also dial 173.243.2.68 and enter your meeting number.
Join by phone:
+1-415-655-0003 United States Toll
Access code: 2495 800 3692
NSU’s Inferno Pitch is a north Louisiana entrepreneurial and business development event that is currently open to all NSU business students, encouraging students to learn about and embrace entrepreneurship. Students can submit models for new businesses in any industry and receive coaching from industry experts and sharpen their entrepreneurial skills. They also are afforded real-world experience in the startup and capital raising process, opportunities to network with industry experts and seasoned entrepreneurs and collaborate with other like-minded participants and a chance to take a business idea from concept to commercialization.
This initiative is sponsored by the Entrepreneurial Accelerator Program (EAP), which is a division of BRF. EAP’s mission is to build an inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem in north Louisiana.
For more information about the Inferno Pitch contact Dr. Weiwen Liao, associate professor and coordinator of Inferno Pitch 2025, at (318)-357-5692 or liaow@nsula.edu