NATCHITOCHES – With Saturday's finale tied in the fourth inning, Northwestern State relied on yet another big inning to push past Texas A&M-Corpus Christi for a series sweep.

Sophomore Julie Rawls belted a grand slam as NSU cruised to an 8-0 win in five innings.

Rawls' grand slam, her fifth home run this season, was part of a six-run, fourth inning that generated breathing space for pitcher Micaela Bouvier and the rest of the team.

NSU (20-9, 8-1 Southland Conference) swept the Islanders (8-23-1, 0-9 SLC) with the aid of three big innings – a pair of four-run frames in Friday's 7-2 and 9-3 wins before Saturday's six-run inning.

The Lady Demons added two runs in the fifth inning to complete the run-rule win with senior Sidney Salmans scoring the final run on a Cayla Jones RBI.

???????Salmans, who went 3-for-4 with two runs scored, went 7-for-11 on the weekend to raise her batting average 50 points to .272.

"I've been trying to work on a lot of things with my swing, trying to break it down and figure out what's working and what's not," Salmans said. "We know that in this lineup, maybe if you don't get it done, the person behind you can.

"(The 8-1 start in conference play) shows how hard we've been working, and it's a great start."

The Lady Demons were in a fight at the start with both teams stranding the bases loaded in the first inning.

NSU loaded the bases with no outs, but TAMU-CC starter Ashley Smith induced three straight ground balls to keep a clean sheet.

???????Bouvier (10-3) was just as good with runners on base, keeping TAMU-CC scoreless despite two runners in scoring position with no outs.

The senior struck out two of her six Islanders in that frame.

"With runners on, it's not any different than with the bases empty. "You always have to stay within yourself and not get crazy.

"I just keep doing what I know how to do and trust my defense, which has been really great this year. Our team kind of does the same thing, whether we're tied, up six runs or down six runs, we've just got to keep working."

???????Bouvier allowed just three hits and two walks in the five-inning shutout, her third of the season and second in as many weekends.

Only one other TAMU-CC runner reached scoring position after the first inning, and Salmans threw out that runner at home plate on a shallow single.

???????Bouvier recorded two wins in a series for the second time this season and improved her SLC record to 5-1.­­­­­

Third baseman Adele Vincent recorded her first multi-hit game of the season with a 2-for-3 effort, scoring two runs. She's made three starts in NSU's last four games at the hot corner.

Vincent (singled) scored NSU's first run of the fifth inning on a Madelyn Matt double.

She also started NSU's big 6-run inning with a double near the top of the outfield wall.

NSU continues conference play this weekend when it hosts defending conference champion McNeese in a three-game series starting Friday.