BEAUMONT, Texas -- Freshman Natalya Krutova had a standout performance for Northwestern State's women's tennis team as the fourth-seeded Lady Demons notched a commanding 4-1 victory over No.1 Southeastern Louisiana in the semifinals of the Southland Conference Tournament on Saturday at the Beaumont Municipal Tennis Center.
 
“We started with singles today due to impending rain,” said Lady Demon head coach Patric DuBois. “All six girls came out firing on all cylinders with a lot of energy.”
 
The win secures NSU (13-7) a spot in the championship match on Sunday afternoon against No. 2 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (16-3). The Islanders defeated Sam Houston State 4-2 on Saturday in the second round of the tournament.
 
The Lady Demons fell 4-3 to AMCC on March 9 in their first conference match of the season.
 
“We look forward to a great battle with Texas A&M-Corpus Christi tomorrow,” said DuBois. “ Our last four matches against them have come down to the last match for 4-3 scores.
 
Krutova blemished Renee Villareal's perfect season when she brought the Lady Lion down 6-1, 7-6 (9) in the No. 3 match.
 
Polina Konop registered a 6-3, 6-2 victory in the No. 1 match, taking down Reginka Nychytailova while Olga Leyshyna overpowered Isabel Brito 6-3, 6-0 in the fifth spot.
 
“Polina and Olga took care of business in straight sets to set the tone of the match,” said DuBois. “Tatiana and Natalya stayed steady with their game plans to win very tough battles. I am very proud of all of these girls. They continue to fight hard and give great effort.”
 
Tatiana Larina recorded the match-winning point as she defeated Nastya Tokareva 6-2, 2-6, 6-2 in a three-set battle at the No. 2 position.
 
“Corpus plays with a lot of energy and is well coached,” said DuBois. “It should be a great match tomorrow.”
 
Northwestern State 4, Southeastern Louisiana 1
Beaumont Municipal Tennis Center
Beaumont, Texas

Singles Competition
No. 1 - Polina Konop (NSU) def. Reginka Nychytailova (SLU) 6-3, 6-2
No. 2 – Tatiana Larina (NSU) def. Nastya Tokareva (SLU) 6-2, 2-6, 6-2
No. 3 - Natalya Krutova (NSU) def. Renee Villareal (SLU) 6-1, 7-6 (9)
No. 4 - Valya Rusakova (SLU) def. Andrea Nedorostova (NSU) 6-4, 6-1
No. 5 - Olga Leyshyna (NSU) def. Isabel Brito (SLU) 6-3, 6-0
No. 6 - Adriana Castillo (SLU) vs. Daniela Simonova (NSU) DNF
 
No Doubles Competition