BEAUMONT, Texas — Some things have to change and some things have never changed for the Northwestern State softball team. 

The Lady Demons approach at the plate is being altered in an effort to jumpstart the offense, while their mentality of a short memory when things go splendidly or unfortunately has yet to change. 

"Every weekend is a new start," head coach Donald Pickett said. "So good or bad, you have to forget about last weekend and you have to move forward and get ready to go for this weekend."

NSU owns a 15-11 overall record and a 9-3 mark in Southland Conference play. It travels to Lamar — which sits at 4-32 overall and 0-12 in league action — for a three-game series beginning Friday at 4 p.m.

The Lady Demons were enjoying a torrid start to conference play with nine straight wins when Central Arkansas visited Natchitoches last weekend. The Bears got the better of NSU in all three contests.

The Lady Demons had trouble producing runs, scoring just four against Central Arkansas. That prompted Picket to make a couple adjustments. 

"We are tweaking a few things with our swings," Pickett said. "We can't let one weekend deter us from the goals we have for the team. We have to bounce back." 

Junior E.C. Delafield has done it all for NSU through the first half of the season. She's been the Lady Demons most consistent pitcher and the bat that solidifies the lineup.

She lays claim to a 5-2 record in the circle. She has a team-best 1.76 ERA with 48 strikeouts in 55.2 innings pitched. 

Delafield boasts a team-high .350 batting average, hitting from the No. 3 spot in the lineup. She has five doubles, one home run and 15 RBIs.

Freshman infielder Kat Marshall has been one of NSU's most constant hitters this season. She holds a .333 batting average with six doubles, one triple and eight RBIs. 

Senior outfielder Hayley Barbazon represents the other Lady Demon hitting north of .300. She's batting .327 with one double, two triples and four RBIs. 

Hannah Carpenter leads Lamar at the dish with a .333 average and 10 RBIs. She's the lone Cardinal hitting above .300.

Shelby Mixon and Breanna Reyna have both made a team-high 12 starts. Mixon holds a 1-10 record with a 8.72 ERA, while Reyna is also 1-10 with a 10.78 ERA.

NSU is 28-14 all-time against Lamar. The Lady Demons took the most recent matchup — which occurred in the opening round of the 2019 Southland Conference tournament — however the Cardinals took two out of three during the last regular-season series. 

"Traveling down on Friday, the day of the game, it's going to be a big day for us," Pickett said. "I'm hoping we can rise to that challenge, and come in there and take care of business on Friday and play well, and be able to bounce back and play well for three games."

Following the series against Lamar, Northwestern State dips out of conference play for a single game at Grambling. That game is set for Tuesday at 3 p.m.