NATCHITOCHES-- In the biggest match of the season, the Northwestern State Lady Demons tennis team takes on Southland Conference unbeaten Abilene Christian Friday at the Jack Fisher Tennis Complex Friday in a battle that could determine the league championship.

In addition to ACU on Friday, the Lady Demons will be observing Senior Day on Sunday, as NSU will honor lone senior Polina Mutel before hosting Incarnate Word to end the regular season. Both matches begin at 11 a.m.

NSU (16-4 overall, 8-1 Southland) has won the third most matches in its history and is aiming for its first regular-season conference championship since 2014. The Lady Demons are a perfect 12-0 at home this season.

Their perfect mark in Southland play was blemished on the road Tuesday when Stephen F. Austin overcame a 3-1 deficit to notch a 4-3 upset.

"We had a good discussion after the loss to Stephen F. Austin," head coach Patric DuBois said. "We all agreed it's time to play the way we practice every day.

"Everybody needs to be on the same page and the process we know to do. We're prepared to do that this weekend against Abilene Christian and Incarnate Word."

Abilene Christian (12-8, 8-0) has won four straight matches and has won its last six conference matches by at least three points. The Wildcats have not won the Southland Conference title since re-joining the league in 2013. This will be only their second road match in league play this season.

Mutel is one of the most decorated players in school history, amassing 47 singles wins, which is 16th all-time at NSU. She and partner Polina Ivanova went 17-2 in 2018 in doubles, which is tied for the sixth best doubles winning percentage in school history.

"Polina has meant the world to our program," DuBois said. "She's a great competitor, great person, great student and great athlete. Polina's been a wonderful leader as a senior this year.

"She has always played in the top three for us in singles and the top two in doubles. It's not an easy task, starting as a freshman and continuing through her senior year."

She is 5-6 so far in her final season with the Lady Demons and 3-5 in conference, playing at the top singles spot in the rotation. In doubles, Mutel is 7-4 overall and 5-2 in Southland action, playing with both Ela Iwaniuk and Maria Skyba.

Mutel was the Southland Player of the Year in 2018 and first-team all-conference in both singles and doubles.

Both junior Ela Iwaniuk and redshirt freshman Rhea Verma remained a perfect 9-0 in conference play after the last two matches over the past week, as Verma came back to win the final two sets at Sam Houston after dropping the first one.

Iwaniuk's nine conference wins matches her win total in league action from last year, and of those conference wins, all nine were decided in straight sets. In only three of the 18 sets has her opponent scored more than three games. She has a team-best 15 victories and has won four consecutive matches.

Like Iwaniuk, Verma has also won nine conference matches, and has four consecutive triumphs. Unlike her teammate, the freshman has often gone the distance, as she has won four of her contests either in three sets or a pro-set. Her 14 victories is second on the team.

Judit Castillo Gargallo is third on the team in wins with 13, including a 5-2 mark in league action, the latest a dominating 6-1, 6-1 triumph against Stephen F. Austin.

The No. 3 doubles pairing of Castillo Gargallo and Emilija Dancetovic leads the way for the Lady Demons, as they are 13-3 overall and 5-2 in conference play. The No. 2 team of Verma and Patrycja Polanska is 12-6.

ACU is led by Allison Stewart and Ileana Mocciola, who are a combined 15-0 in Southland Conference action, playing at the No. 5 and 6 spots, respectively. It could be an undefeated battle between Iwaniuk and Stewart. No one in the Wildcats lineup is below .500 in conference play, and five of the six have at least five wins.

Incarnate Word (4-13, 0-9) has dropped nine in a row since a four-game winning streak evened its record at 4-4. The Cardinals have not scored a point in either of the last two matches.

Following this weekend, the Lady Demons will have two weeks to prepare for the conference tournament, which begins April 25 in Corpus Christi, Texas.