NATCHITOCHES – After dangerous travel conditions caused the Northwestern State baseball team's high-anticipated game against LSU to be moved back, the Demons are set to host five games in four days staring at 3 o'clock on Thursday with the fourth-ranked Tigers at Brown-Stroud Field.
 
NSU's (6-4) game with LSU (9-2) was originally scheduled for Tuesday at 7 o'clock, but winter weather possibilities after nightfall forced officials to move the game to 3:30 on Tuesday.  After the Tigers faced icy road conditions, both teams agreed to play Thursday. 
 
Any fan who has a ticket to the baseball game can get into the NSU basketball doubleheader at no charge.  Both the Lady Demons and Demons will be hosting Central Arkansas in crucial games.
 
After the game on Thursday, NSU will host a three-team event that features Chicago State (4-6) and McNeese State (7-3).  The Demons will play four games between Friday and Saturday, and Cowboys and Cougars will each play three.  The first game of the event will be between NSU and CSU at 6:30 on Friday.
 
"It's going to be about mental and physical toughness.  We're going to approach this like a conference tournament or a regional where you have to fight all the way through.  Sometime you have to play multiple games in a day," said second-year skipper Lane Burroughs. "Five games in four days will be a good test for us, and were excited about it. I guarantee if you ask our guys they'd rather be playing than practicing."
 
The Demons will play McNeese on Saturday at noon and Chicago State at 6:30.  The final game for Northwestern State will be at 4 o'clock on Sunday against McNeese State.
 
"This early in the year, I don't think it is a bad thing to play so many games," Burroughs said. "Actually as coaches, we're excited about it and our guys are too."
 
Senior right-hander Steven Spann (2-1, 3.27 earned run average) will start for NSU on the mound on Thursday. Against LSU last season, he worked three innings and allowed two walks and struck out two. This season he has appeared in three games with two starts. He has 11 innings logged on the year with 10 hits, four runs, and six strikeouts.
 
LSU will start left-handed freshman Jared Poché (2-0, 0.69). He appeared in two games, both starts, and worked 13 innings with eight hits and one run allowed. Poché has 10 strikeouts and no walks.
 
Thursday's contest will be the first time that LSU has visited Brown-Stroud field since 2003. The top three attendance records for Brown-Stroud are all games that featured the Demons (6-4) and the No. 4 Tigers (9-2). The game's attendance (2,329) in 2003 is second to the crowd of 4,214 watching NSU's 10-8 win over LSU in 2001.
 
LSU edged the Demons in 13 innings last year in Baton Rouge, 2-1. The Demons topped the Tigers 5-2 in Alex Box Stadium in 2011.
 
LSU's Kady Scivicque (.429) and Mark Laird (.409) both boast a batting average over .400 this season. Sean McMullen (.300) leads the Tigers in RBIs with 10 and Connor Hale (.389) and Alex Bregman (.389) lead with 14 runs scored.
 
On Friday, left-hander Hunter Duvic (0-1, 4.26 ERA) will start on the mound for the Demons, and will face right-hander Eric Hall (0-0, 1.17 ERA) of Chicago State.  Righty John Gault (2-0, 4.80 ERA) will be the starting pitcher for NSU in the first game on Saturday. 
 
Freshman Adam Oller (0-0, 3.52) will start on the hill in the second game on Saturday for the Demons, and Chicago State will pitch righty Andrew Wellwerts (1-2, 5.48) against Oller.  Neither team NSU or McNeese have determined a pitcher for the final game on Sunday.
 
Caleb Dugas leads the Demons at the plate this season. He has played at first base in all 10 games and had a .333 batting average with seven hits, seven runs batted in and runs scored.  Chase Daughdrill who has reached base in every game this season, is hitting .286 with a team-lead 11 RBIs and eight runs.
 
Sanford Hunt leads the Cougars in hitting with a .361 batting average with a double and one run batted in.  Chase Matheson (.345) and Evan Davis (.333) lead Chicago State with 11 RBIs apiece. 
 
"Chicago State has had some bad luck with the weather. They came down to McNeese's tournament and played a few weeks ago," said Burroughs.  "They've played some good teams and have played very well. They are a blue-collar team that is going to come after us."
 
Lloyd Conner leads the Cowboys at the plate with a .419 batting average and 10 RBIs on the season.  Jackson Gooch, who was named College Sports Madness player of the week, leads McNeese with 13 RBIs and has a .395 batting average.
 
"McNeese has a good club.  They have two preseason all-conference guys, and Justin Hill and his staff have added energy," said Burroughs. "They have a good team and we're very excited to play two good teams."
 
The Demons have no midweek games before traveling to Oral Roberts on March 14 to open Southland Conference play.