NATCHITOCHES – Protecting its home turf has been a strength of Northwestern State since a nearly $500,000 renovation has made the facility a jewel in the Southland Conference.

NSU is 57-21 overall at home and 35-14 against conference opponents at Lady Demon Diamond since 2013, but this weekend's invaders are arguably the best opponent to set foot in Natchitoches in that span.

First-place McNeese State (28-9, 13-2 SLC) visits for a three-game series with the Lady Demons (23-16, 6-9 SLC) starting Friday at 6 p.m. The series finishes with a Saturday doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m.

"(McNeese) is probably the best team we've played all year –in conference and maybe out of conference," said NSU coach Donald Pickett of the Cowgirls, who rank No. 40 in RPI. "They've done well and beaten some great teams, and it will definitely be a challenge for us.

"Everybody has to pull together and be committed as one to give ourselves a chance. Right now, I'm more concerned about our mindset and what our approach will be than I am about what other teams are doing."

After a sweep at the hands of Central Arkansas this past weekend, NSU showed signs of a rebound with an 11-9 win at Louisiana Tech.

The Lady Demons produced their third-highest run total this season after scoring just two combined runs in three UCA losses. The offense had been relatively consistent, scoring at least four runs or more in 13 of the last 15 games.

"It was crucial because we bounced back from a hard weekend (at UCA) where nothing was working," said junior Brittney Jones, who recorded three hits in Tuesday's win at La. Tech. "We couldn't figure out what was wrong, but we conquered it in (Monday's) practice, and we worked through (Tuesday's) game and did what we needed to do.

"We can't let these games against McNeese get too big. I feel like that's what we did last year against Lamar in the conference tournament, and that's why we lost. But with so many experienced players, we'll be able to work through this weekend like we did against Louisiana Tech."

Jones has been a consistent bat in NSU's lineup, hitting .322 with eight home runs, 22 RBIs and a team-high 24 walks.

The weekend series will feature two other hitters who are statistically the best in the conference.

NSU junior Kellye Kincannon leads the league with a .430 batting average and is second in five other categories, including doubles (13), home runs (12) and RBIs (36).

Kincannon went 4-for-4 with two home runs and five RBIs to beat Louisiana Tech, moving into second-place all-time on NSU's career home run chart with 39.

McNeese sophomore Erika Piancastelli leads the league with 42 runs scored, 18 home runs (leads the nation), 37 walks and a 1.071 slugging percentage.

NSU has won three of the last four against McNeese, including two in Lake Charles in 2015.

Pickett said he liked the way his team fought off Louisiana Tech, and he hopes to see more this weekend.

"We've got to get our heads and minds right and understand what our approach needs to be," Pickett said. "Our team battled against a good Louisiana Tech team, and we'll see how much character we have as a team coming down the stretch in how we respond to the UCA weekend.

"We're talented enough that if we're right mentally, then we'll compete in every game we've got left. If not, we won't give ourselves many chances to win. How we handle this will be critical to how we finish out the year."

NSU sits in a tie for seventh place with Sam Houston State (6-9 SLC) in the SLC standings. Because fourth-place Abilene Christian is ineligible for the conference tournament, the Lady Demons would get the sixth and final spot after beating SHSU in a road series earlier this season.

The Lady Demons have three of their final four league series at home. After McNeese, NSU heads to No. 3 Nicholls (10-4 SLC), hosts No. 6 Stephen F. Austin (7-7 SLC) and hosts No. 10 Southeastern (5-10 SLC).

Both NSU and McNeese have notable non-conference wins. Each team knocked off Mississippi State, which was ranked at one point this season.

McNeese went 1-2 against No. 19 Baylor, a team that had come back against NSU late in one of its two wins over the Lady Demons. The Cowgirls topped Ole Miss as well.

NSU counts Oklahoma State, DePaul and Chattanooga among its top non-conference wins to spur its third-best start in program history at 16-5.