NATCHITOCHES – Samantha Roberts became the first Lady Demon in program history to hit three home runs in a single game against Jackson State on Tuesday, and will look to keep powering hits on Friday when the Northwestern State softball team hosts McNeese State at 6 p.m. in the first of a two-game series at the Lady Demon Diamond Complex.

 

Roberts hit a solo homer in the fourth inning, three-run shot in the sixth and two-run bomb in the seventh to account for six-RBI as NSU (12-16, 1-1 SLC) rolled 16-6 to win in the second game of the doubleheader over JSU.

 

“Samantha looked very confident at the plate on Tuesday and really trusted herself swinging the bat. The coaches know she is very capable of performing like this on a consistent basis, and it was really good to see her take over the game and carry us offensively,” said head coach Donald Pickett.

 

In the victory, NSU became the only team in the SLC to score at least one run in all seven innings of a game this season. The 16 runs also marked the most the Lady Demons have scored in a single game since March 30, 2006 when they defeated Grambling State 16-0.

 

“We knew we were going to be better offensively than we were last season, and our team has worked very hard to improve. After losing in such a tough way in the first game on Tuesday, the team really wanted to make a big response and keep scoring runs,” Pickett said.  

 

NSU dropped the first game of the doubleheader, 9-8, after leading 8-3 heading into the bottom of the seventh.

 

Blair Beard enters the weekend on a nine-game hitting streak and is one of five Lady Demons who are hitting over .300 on the season. Tara McKenney, who is on a seven-game hitting streak, leads the team with a .363 average and six doubles.

 

McNeese State (17-8, 2-0 SLC) is coming off a two-game sweep over Texas-San Antonio last weekend to open its conference season. Senior outfielder Claire Terracina leads the lineup with a .333 average, five triples and .500 slugging.

 

Pitching has been a major strength for the Cowgirls, as Meagan Bond and Tiffany Denham have been on the mound for nearly every inning. Bond is 10-6 with a 2.70 ERA in 90.2 innings, while Denham is 6-2 with a 1.39 ERA in 60.1 innings.

 

The Cowgirls registered a marquee win over No. 1 ranked and defending national champions Arizona State, 3-1 on Feb. 10. They also defeated Houston 6-5, a NCAA Super Regional team in 2011.

 

“We're going to have to play our best ball this weekend,” Pickett said. “So far this year I haven't felt as if we've really played a complete game at all phases yet, and we're going to need to do that beat McNeese State.”

 

NSU swept McNeese State in a three-game series at home last season, and is 70-61 all-time against the Cowgirls.

 

The second game of the series will begin at 1 p.m. on Saturday at the Lady Demon Diamond Complex.