NATCHITOCHES -- After losing multiple leads Wednesday in a loss at Louisiana Tech, Northwestern State can take comfort in the return of two elements in which the Lady Demons have been successful.
 
Home-field advantage and conference play.
 
NSU (17-9, 5-1 Southland Conference) hosts Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (8-20-1, 0-6 SLC) in a three-game series starting Friday with a 5 p.m. doubleheader and ending with Saturday's 1 p.m. finale.
 
The Lady Demons are 12-0 at home this year and 7-1 against SLC opponents (beat Stephen F. Austin twice in non-league play). Only five of those wins have been decided by three runs or fewer.
 
"It's always good to be at home, and we need to take the positives from Wednesday and refocus," said NSU coach Donald Pickett. "We have the motivation to bring the focus and the fight, something we've done pretty well this year.
 
"We can't have a letdown in focus."
 
NSU won two of three games at TAMU-CC this past season, slipping by the Islanders 3-2 before a 12-1 rout. TAMU-CC prevented the sweep with a 5-4 win.
 
The Lady Demons have eight of the last 10 games in the series, but the SLC has proven to be a deep league.

For example, Central Arkansas swept then-No. 25 McNeese in the opening weekend, then lost the series at Incarnate Word. UIW entered that series 3-12 and winless in league play.
 
By sweeping Lamar on the opening weekend, NSU was one of five SLC teams to start league play 3-0. But just two of those five teams won their second series -- second-place NSU (5-1) and league leader Nicholls (6-0).
 
Pickett knows nothing comes easy in conference play.
 
"(TAMU-CC) played us two close games last year, and we know it's going to be a battle," Pickett said. "We've got to execute well, and we've got to have good pitching in the circle.
 
"We need to be a little more consistent up and down the lineup."
 
At Louisiana Tech, the middle of the order (positions No. 3-7) produced all seven RBIs and scored six of the seven runs in a 9-7 loss.

NSU lost leads of four runs and two runs in the defeat.
 
The Lady Demons struggled in the circle, allowing nine runs on 13 hits and seven walks.
 
But NSU has been much better at home in the circle, posting five of its six shutouts in Natchitoches.

The Lady Demons are allowing 1.5 runs per game in 12 home contests.
 
The Islanders have scored three or fewer runs in 16 of its 29 games.