BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – The Northwestern State women's track and field team has quite the run of success going at Southland Conference championships.
 
For 10 straight indoor and outdoor conference meets, the Lady Demons have posted a top-three finish. In order for NSU to continue that and possibly break through with a team championship, it will do so with a different group of leaders.
 
And while 19-time conference gold medalist Natashia "Speedy" Jackson is no longer on the NSU roster, her influence is still being felt.
 
"Just her energy, her composure," senior thrower Kristin McDuffie said. "It means a lot. It encourages us to do better."
 
The Lady Demons built their run of consistent success in much larger conference meets as this year's edition features eight teams instead of the 13 from years past.
 
As NSU eyes that breakthrough championship, it does so from a standpoint of quality depth.
 
Led by Lynell Washington, the Lady Demon sprint squad features five of the conference's top seven times in the 60 meters. Washington owns the best time in the conference in both the 60 – an altitude-adjusted 7.36 – and in the 200 – an altitude-adjusted 24.38.
 
A New Orleans product, Washington has broken the school 60-meter record a total of three times in her past two meets.
 
"She's super talented," head coach Mike Heimerman said. "She could make it to the national meet in those events, and she's really more of a 100-meter girl. She really hits her stride when it's time to shut it down in the 60. (Associate head) Coach Adam (Pennington) has done a great job with all the sprinters, and I can't wait to go out there and watch them compete."
 
Washington is joined atop the Southland leaderboard by freshman Maygan Shaw, whose 56.46 mark tops the league's 400-meter group.
 
Just behind Shaw in the 400 is teammate Janiel Moore (56.83), who also ranks second in the conference in the 60-meter hurdles with an altitude-adjusted 8.64. Moore and Aliyah Carswell give the Lady Demons a pair of multi-event standouts who can add to the NSU point total.
 
Moore and Washington are joined in both performance and personality.
 
"They lead by example, not as much by words but by their actions," Heimerman said. "Janiel has been a workhorse for us, and she's really coming into her own. I mean that as she finally believes in herself. The coaches have seen it all along. She's in a few events and can medal in all of them. It's exciting and something she's prepared herself for to lead this team."
 
Leading is what the NSU pole vault squad has done for most of the indoor season.
 
Paced by AnneMarie Broussard's conference-leading 13-7.25 clearance, the Lady Demons have four of the top five marks in the conference.
 
Joining Broussard among the top five vaulters in the conference are Karlyn Trahan (2^nd, 12-7.5), Madison Brown (4^th, 12-1.5) and Parish Kitto (T-5^th, 12-0.5).  
 
"They're all talented," Heimerman said. "Hopefully, they can go out there and do what they do. AnneMarie's won a couple of conference titles. Hopefully, we'll go out and execute and have a good meet. It's a scary event, because you can be on and go out and no-height. We'll have a team meeting, and tell everyone to go out, give 100 percent and do what you do."
 
For McDuffie, her career progression in the weight throw has built toward this two-day meet.
 
A senior from Texarkana, Texas, McDuffie won a bronze medal in the event in 2020 and was the runner-up in 2021.
 
"I feel like third time's a charm," she said. "I've realized this season has not gone the way I wanted it to go. Coming in ranked fourth, I don't pay a lot of attention to that. I know what I'm capable of and what I can do. All I can do is do what I've done in practice and put it out there in competition and win it all."