NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State soccer team resumes the heated battle on Friday for its first Southland Conference regular season title since 2000.

NSU (6-4-3, 6-1-1 SLC) opens its final two-match home stand of the season with a rematch against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (4-7-2, 2-3-2 SLC).

In their initial match on Sept. 19, Southland leading scorer Olivia Draguicevich exploded for a career-high four goals, shutting the door on the Islanders in a 4-0 rout while claiming the record for most goals scored against a conference opponent in program history. Draguicevich earned her first career hat trick in just 27 minutes of play, the sixth player in Lady Demon history to score three goals in a single match.  

Since that day, Draguicevich has continued leaving her mark across the league, having scored three goals in the four proceeding matches.

Head coach Stuart Gore reflected on the Lady Demons' last outing against the Islanders and explained why they must be respected as opponents entering Friday's match.

"I think the score line from our last match doesn't really replicate how good Corpus is as a team," Gore said. They'll be headed here looking to change the script from a few weeks back and set a few things right."

The Lady Demons' fate is tied directly to that of league opponent McNeese's, both tied for first in the conference and each touting a 6-1-1 mark in league play with 19 total points. As Southland travel partners, the Cowgirls' schedule essentially mirrors that of NSU's, meaning that both programs will face the same final three teams before facing off against one another in the conference final on Oct. 29.

Gore spoke of not trying to focus too intently on matches beyond the one immediately ahead:

"I'm trying to keep the team from looking beyond the end of their nose at things that perhaps aren't quite within their control," Gore said. "We have to respect the remainder of our opponents equally, because they are all playing for something. Corpus is (hosting the Southland Tournament) at home, so they're probably looking for the best seed they can get."

Senior goalkeeper Acelya Aydogmus has played every minute in the net to this point for the Lady Demons. She has seven shutouts on the season, closing in on the all-time single season record set at nine – a record which she set during a shortened 2020 season.

Aydogmus currently has 58 saves on the season and a GAA of .87, which is good for second all-time, once again behind only herself, having posted a staggering GAA of .41 just the season before.

NSU maintains a 5-3-1 edge in the all-time series against the Islanders. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. at the Lady Demon Soccer Complex.