NATCHITOCHES—A goal in the 8^th minute by Abby Deakin was the difference, as the Northwestern State soccer team dropped a 1-0 decision to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Friday night at the Lady Demon Soccer Complex.

NSU (7-7-1 overall, 4-2-1 Southland) fell for the first time this month, but still is on the inside track of making the conference tournament. This game continues the trend of one-goal matches, as all seven of the Lady Demons conference contests have been decided by a goal and 11 consecutive overall.

For TAMUCC (8-5-1, 5-1-1), it is the fourth consecutive victory and it pushes its unbeaten streak to six in a row. With the win, the Islanders clinched a spot in the conference tournament for the first time since 2017 when they were 3-6-2 in league play.

"We had a good second half," co-head coach Jess Jobe said. "We came out strong and won the shots total and the possession overall in that second half.

"We put them under a lot of pressure and were unlucky not to score. It was a good game and they're a good team. It was a battle and we have to live with the result and move on."

The Islanders controlled much of the opening half, and was able to break through on Deakin's team-leading seventh of the season. She found a little crease outside the top of the box and hit the back of the net into the right side of the goal. The assist was credited to Shayla Spearman, her second assist of the year.

NSU had four shots in the opening 45 minutes, but only one was saved, and it was a routine save for Kyleigh Hall, who has won the past three Southland Conference Goalkeeper of the Week awards.

The Lady Demons came out in attack mode in the second half, racking up six shots in the first 22 minutes of the half. The biggest chance came on a pass to Jayme Haynes, who had just entered the match. She got free, but the Islanders defense rallied, forcing Haynes to boot the ball wide right of the net.

Sophomore Jalen Donaldson had two chances in succession in the 77^th minute, but one was saved by Hall and the other was wide left. Leading scorer Olivia Draguicevich had one final chance in the closing minutes, but Hall came up with her third and final save to clinch the game for the Islanders.

NSU dominated the shots, 13-3, including 3-1 on goal. Donaldson, Draguicevich, Alexis Weaver and Samantha Hanking all had two shots to lead the home team.

Hall had three saves for the Islanders, and she posted her seventh shutout of the season, including four in conference play.

"We have to create better quality chances," Jobe said. "We dominated the shot statistic, so we're happy with how many we took. We just have to create quality shots."

NSU is back at it Sunday at 1 p.m. for Senior Day against Houston Baptist, where the team will honor Kayla Bomben, Jayden Wheeler and Courtney LeJeune. The Lady Demons can clinch a spot in the Southland Conference Tournament with a victory.