NATCHITOCHES—Polina Mutel's tireless endurance after a big first-set deficit was decisive in Northwestern State's 4-3 Southland Conference women's tennis victory Friday over Sam Houston State in the league opener for both teams at NSU's Jack Fisher Tennis Complex.

Facing off against Sam Houston's Fabienne Gettwart in the No. 1 singles match, Mutel showed no intimidation, rallying to a 7-5 first-set victory after trailing 5-2.

Keeping the momentum, she resiliently fought for a 6-4 win in the second set, scoring the point which clinched the match for the Lady Demons. Sam Houston prevailed in the only remaining singles matchup to close the final score to 4-3.

NSU (5-5) hosts another Southland match Sunday at 11 against Lamar. Sam Houston slipped to 5-3 overall after Mutel's upset at No. 1.

"The competition was really tough. Position No. 1 is not easy," said Mutel, who rose to 5-3 in the top slot of the lineup. "It always feels great to clinch the match. You need to stay focused all the time. The players in our conference are really strong."

Mutel's performance followed intense competition by her fellow Lady Demons in singles play.

With the overall match score knotted at 2-2, Judit Castillo recovered from a 2-6 first-set loss at No. 5, but quickly took control in a 6-3 second-set win against Sam Houston's Mila Milanovic. Castillo dominated 6-1 to score the go-ahead point for NSU, and a few minutes later, Mutel's victory won the day for the Lady Demons.

The Lady Demons notched the afternoon's first point in doubles action, starting with Mutel and Polina Ivanova at No. 1 posting a 6-0 win and clinching with Castillo and Kateryna Avram equally dominant, 6-1 in the No. 2 slot.

"We were really aggressive from the beginning, and it helped us to be aggressive until the end," Mutel said.

Singles started easily enough for NSU when Ivanova shook hands with SHSU's Khee Yen Wee after a 6-0, 6-4 triumph to capture the No. 2 singles point for an overall 2-1 edge.

Sam Houston answered with a win by the same score at No. 6 and squared the score when Sahaja Yamalapalli topped NSU's Emilija Dancetovic 7-5, 6-2 at No. 3. With the match outcome at stake, Castillo and Mutel came through.

"We fought hard in all of our singles matches to claw out three more wins and clinch the victory," head coach Patric DuBois said. "Sam Houston is a solid, well-coached team."