LAFAYETTE – Offensive improvement would be a natural conclusion for a Northwestern State soccer team that went from being shutout Friday against UTSA to scoring three goals in a Sunday win at Louisiana Tech.

The Lady Demons (1-1) surely did improve, but first-year co-head coach Jess Jobe said the performance looked much the same. The key factor was NSU finished its opportunities Sunday.

Now the Lady Demons welcome back arguably their best finisher in senior Brittany Caserma as NSU hits the road Friday at UL Lafayette (0-1-1) in a 7 p.m. contest.

"It's nice to break the ice with our first goals, and really all we did was execute (Sunday) the things we talked about in that day between (Saturday)," Jobe said. "A lot of it was very similar to Friday, we just worked a little harder to get on the end of some of those balls.

"Getting Caserma back is important because she's our target forward in the best sense of the word. She creates problems and puts center backs under pressure, and you have to be aware of her both at the point of our press and then on the attack."

Caserma led NSU with eight goals in 2017, which ranked third in the Southland Conference, netting her a second-team selection both in the postseason and on the 2018 preseason squad.

The Murrieta, California, native said it was difficult to watch her team create chances but unable to finish in Friday's loss.

"It was tough (Friday), but it was really exciting to see us win our first game (Sunday) and see us score three goals," Caserma said. "I'm pretty pumped to play this weekend after missing the first two games, and it was great see our team come together.

"We've grown quickly since our exhibition match (at Little Rock). It's taken some time to mesh together and learn how each other plays with such a big freshmen class coming in, but we're quickly getting the hang of things."

After freshman Kylee Dominy booted in a free kick, senior April Trowbridge scored two more first half goals Sunday in a 3-2 win at Louisiana Tech.

Trowbridge's first goal appeared extraordinary as she windmilled her leg while running past the corner of the box to flick a shot over the oncoming Techster goalkeeper.

"I used the outside of my right foot to kick the ball," Trowbridge said. "It's kind of weird, but I scored those goals often back in Canada.

"For me, it was an easy finish that I've done a lot before, and I had a good feeling about that one."

While Trowbridge's windmill tactics might be new to NSU fans, a familiar sight will be seeing Trowbridge and Caserma work in tandem to put opposing defenses under pressure.

Trowbridge assisted on three of Caserma's eight goals.

"We created some opportunities Friday that we were unlucky to finish," Trowbridge said. "Having (Caserma) back will help with that because that's her game. We missed her, but we're excited to see where this team is going."

ULL is looking for its first win of the season after dropping to Ole Miss, 6-0, and tying Sam Houston State ,1-1.

But the Ragin' Cajuns have won the last five meetings with NSU, including a 2-0 win in Lafayette in 2017. ULL took the all-time series lead 8-7 with its most recent win.