NATCHITOCHES – Gearing up for its first three-game series at home, the Northwestern State baseball team is set to host Southern for a weekend set that starts at 6:30 on Friday in non-conference action at Brown-Stroud Field.
 
The Demons (3-4) and Jaguars (2-2) will play game two of the series on Saturday at 2:00 and finish the series at 1 o'clock on Sunday.  The two teams were supposed to meet on Wednesday for a midweek game in Baton Rouge, but weather forced the game to be postponed.

Northwestern State University President Dr. Randall Webb will be throwing out the first pitch Friday night. 
 
"The games are going to be very athletic and fast," said assistant coach Chris Curry.  "They are going to play small ball a lot like we did against Prairie View A&M.
 
"Coach (Roger) Cador is a legend in coaching and has been doing it a long time," he said. "It is a quality program."
 
NSU will start left-handed pitcher Hunter Duvic (0-2, 3.57 earned run average) Friday night.  Right-handers John Gault (2-0, 2.70) and Adam Oller (0-0, 6.77) will go Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
 
C.J. Webster and Regan Kaufman are tied for the team lead with a .300 batting average.  Webster has one run batted in and four runs scored.  Kaufman has three RBIs and two runs scored.
 
Chase Daughdrill and Joel Atkinson have reached base in every game this season.  Both have drawn three walks, Daughdrill has been hit-by-pitch three times and Atkinson has been hit seven times.  As a team, NSU has drawn 23 hit-by-pitches in the first seven games.
 
"We need to get healthy," said Curry.  "Cort Brinson has been out and he's coming back.  We need to get Nick Heath back and get him some at-bats.  There are still some pitchers that have not thrown.
 
"There is still some preparation we need to do this weekend along with a good Southern team we're playing," he said.
 
D.J. Wallace leads Southern at the plate with a .500 batting average and four RBIs. Almann Snowden (.364), Bud Morton (.364) and Jeremy Glore (.333) are all hitting .300 or higher.
 
The Jags will start Santos Saldivar (1-0, 0.00) on Friday, J'Markus George (0-0, 9.00) on Saturday and Brady May (0-1, 3.00) on Sunday.
 
Northwestern State will host the much-anticipated "State of Purple" day which features nationally ranked baseball and softball teams from LSU playing NSU.  The baseball game will start at 7 o'clock in Brown-Stroud Field.