NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State softball rides its six-game winning streak into LSU's Purple and Gold Challenge, beginning play on Friday against Florida Atlantic at 12:30 p.m. from Tiger Park in Baton Rouge.
Last weekend, NSU (8-8) posted a perfect 5-0 record in the Jackson State Tournament, defeating Saint Louis, Belmont and Morehead State over a three-day span, helped by quality pitching.
"
Micaela Bouvier and
Skylar Cagle really came out and had good weekends," seventh-year head coach
Donald Pickett said. "
Shelby Sells got us an awesome start against Saint Louis. We were able to hold the other teams down and make the adjustments we needed to make. We had more of a team effort in all three phases."
Offensively, NSU exploded for 39 runs in five games, highlighted by back-to-back 10-run outings against Belmont and Morehead State to close out the weekend. The Lady Demons will hope for similar success in Baton Rouge against a field that includes the defending Mid-American Conference champion (Ball State), Sun Belt champion (Florida Atlantic) and No. 7 LSU.
"Ball State has a lot of speed and can put you in a lot of bad situations," Pickett said. "LSU has great pitching and some really great hitters. Florida Atlantic is competitive every single year. All these teams have played in the postseason, so it will be a really good test going into conference play. That's what challenges you and makes you better."
Following its perfect week, NSU vaulted from eighth in the Southland Conference standings in both pitching and hitting to third and fourth, respectively. The Lady Demons are hitting .288 as a team and lead the league in runs (82), hits (120), doubles (29), home runs (18) and RBIs (77).
In the circle, NSU is tied with Central Arkansas for third in the conference with a 3.57 earned run average. The staff is tied with McNeese State for the league lead in strikeouts (72) and has allowed the fewest home runs (5).
"The focus level is there, and we're coming together more as a team," Pickett said. "They understand what their roles are on this team. Last year was a different year and some of the returners are having to fill different roles for us, and I think they're getting more confident."
A big reason for the recent success was
Cassandra Barefield, who notched three home runs in as many days, breaking the school record with her 39
th career long ball and was named Southland Conference hitter of the week on Tuesday. Bouvier, who tossed 16 1-3 innings, did not give up an earned run in three appearances and was named the league's pitcher of the week.
"Their efforts meant everything," Pickett said. "Bouvier coming out against ULM, being able to come in during the first inning with nobody out and us down two runs, getting out of that jam and then holding them off the scoreboard for six innings allowed us to get back into the game. That game really got our momentum going."
NSU holds a 3-2 advantage against Florida Atlantic and a 2-0 edge against Ball State all-time. Saturday's matchup against LSU will be the 30
th between the two clubs, with the Tigers managing a 27-2 mark in the series.
Fans can follow @NSUDemonsSB on Twitter all weekend long for the latest scores, updates and more from Tiger Park.
