NATCHITOCHES – Having built some much-needed momentum earlier this week, the Northwestern State tennis team heads into one of its toughest weekends of its season.

The Lady Demons, coming off a promising 7-0 sweep against LSU-Alexandria on Tuesday, face a quick turnaround and will square off Friday at 1 p.m. against Lamar in the Southland Conference opener for both teams.

Fans who attend home matches at the Jack Fisher Tennis Complex are required to wear a mask and are asked to observe social distancing protocols during the match. Admission to all Northwestern State tennis matches is free.

Despite a trying and unusually long offseason that left it with few non-conference matches, NSU (1-0) does not expect to see any rust in its first conference match.

"We always try to give 100 percent," senior Emilija Dancetovic said. "What we've done this past eleven months will be the same this week, as we focus on our game and get ready for conference."

At 3-2, Lamar enters with victories against Prairie View A&M, UTRGV, and McNeese.

The series between the teams has been close with Northwestern State holding a 20-16 advantage thanks to wins in each of the past three meetings. The Lady Demons' 4-3 victory against the Cardinals on March 1, 2020, started a three-match win streak that came to an abrupt end as the COVID-19 pandemic shut down college athletics less than two weeks later.

In spite of their recent success against Lamar, the Lady Demons have turned their focus inward as they prepare for two matches in three days, capping the first weekend of conference play against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at home Sunday.

"We try not to focus as much on the other team," Dancetovic said. "We know them well, but every game in conference is going to be tough. We like to focus more on ourselves and do our best."