BEAUMONT, Texas — Northwestern State co-head coaches Jess and Anna Jobe have a welcomed issue on their hands ahead of their match at Lamar on Friday at 7 p.m. NSU's depth, which has shined particularly bright of late, is making their decision on who to play quite hard. 

"We are watching practice and players are making strong cases for themselves," Jess Jobe said. "We are seeing many good things from so many good players,. It makes the decisions we make day in and day out really, really difficult. But at the same time, it's the best problem you can have as a coach."

That depth made its presence felt Friday in the Lady Demons' Southland Conference showdown against Stephen F. Austin. NSU received goals from a pair of players who hadn't scored yet this season, giving them eight goal scorers total, in a 3-1 statement win over the second-place Lady Jacks. 

Junior Jalen Donaldson came off the bench to net the go-ahead goal late in the opening half. Sophomore Samantha Hanking logged the third and final score, her first of the season. 

"We have some real quality that can come in and change the game," Jobe said. "To have as many options, we can change the way we are playing and change the combinations of players we have, and it's really fun to be apart of. It's really fun to coach, but it also makes it really difficult and really challenging for us. It's definitely something we celebrate."

Sophomore Olivia Draguicevich boasted the equalizer Friday, and that marked her third goal of the season. She trails junior Kalee Williams who has a team-best four scores, while sophomore Hallie Field and freshmen Delaney Wells, Kyle Nolen, and Cianne Talamo all have found the back of the net once. 

The offensive scoring depth will look to make its presence felt at Lamar in what will be the second straight match pitting the top two teams in the conference. NSU enters with a 7-0-1 overall record and a 5-0-1 mark in Southland Conference play, while the Cardinals lay claim to a 6-1-0 overall record and a 5-1-0 record in league action. 

NSU is off to its best start in school history, and Lamar has won five in a row. Adding to the gravity of the matchup is the fact that the Cardinals defeated NSU in last season's conference tournament title game. 

"It's obviously very meaningful for us, more meaningful for us," Jobe said. "It's more meaningful because in 2019 they ended our season and ended our win streak at the time. We are excited about this one. We have a lot of respect for their program, their coaches and what they've done.

"But in a lot of ways we feel like it's our time, and Friday night will be our opportunity to do that."

Lamar has tallied multiple goals in every game this spring. Esther Okoronkwo leads the way with six scores, while three other players have each scored a pair of goals. 

NSU junior goaltender Acelya Aydogmus has been up to nearly every challenge this season. The three-time Southland Conference Goaltender of the Week honoree has only allowed two goals in 2021 and her shutout steak of six games earlier this season was a school record. 

Lamar owns the lead in the all-time series, 4-8-2. The Cardinals took the most recent matchup in the conference title game, however, NSU took the last regular-season matchup. 

Following the game at Lamar, Northwestern State travels to McNeese on Sunday. That match is set for 1 p.m.