HAMMOND — The Northwestern State softball team staved off elimination Friday during the Southland Conference tournament at North Oak Park. And the Lady Demons did so convincingly.

NSU put forth a complete effort from the circle to the field to the plate, and the final result is proof of that. The No. 4-seeded Lady Demons dispatched No. 6-seeded Sam Houston 8-0 in five innings in an elimination game.

"We needed it, and we had to have it," head coach Donald Pickett said. "The girls stepped up and came through for us. It's do or die from here on out." 

The victory pushes NSU (24-21) to another elimination game Friday night. The No. 4-seeded Lady Demons will battle No. 2-seeded Central Arkansas at 6:30 p.m. 

Junior pitcher E.C. Delafield spearheaded NSU's effort Friday afternoon. She went all five innings, allowing just one hit with two strikeouts, moving to 12-4 on the season. 

"I thought did E.C. did what we needed her to do," Pickett said. "That's what a No. 1 does. They come back when you need a bounce back and shuts them down. I'm really proud of her."

But that wasn't the only thing in which Pickett was proud. In order to log the first run-rule of the tournament, the Lady Demons needed all phases working together.

The bats logged six hits, and the Lady Demons showed discipline at the plate with four walks. 

Freshman outfielder Makenzie Chaffin led the way with a pair of hits. She's enjoyed a strong tournament thus far with a total of four hits. 

The top of the order did most of the rest. The top three in the lineup registered three hits and a total of six RBIs. 

Leadoff-hitter, Delafield, helped out her own cause with an RBI single in the top of the third. Junior infielder Cayla Jones and freshman infielder Keely DuBois recorded a bases-loaded walk and a bases-loaded hit by pitch, respectively, to bring in the next two runs. Sophomore catcher Alexis Perry capped the crooked number with an RBI sacrifice fly. 

The Lady Demons duplicated the four-run third in the fourth. Senior outfielder Kaitlyn St. Clair, the No. 2 hitter, and Jones, the No. 3 hitter, boasted back-to-back, two-run doubles that gave the game its final tally. 

The complete performance extends NSU's season. The Lady Demons will look to exact some revenge against a Central Arkansas team that swept them during the regular season. 

"You don't see tomorrow if you don't get it done," Pickett said. "I think our girls are eager and hungry to get out there and move forward in this tournament. Central Arkansas is a great team that has had a great year. But none of that matters. Tonight is going to be about who plays the best."