HOUSTON—Northwestern State aims to go back to its winning ways when it heads back on the road for a battle with Houston Christian in a Southland Conference match on Sunday at Sorrels Field.

The contest kicks off at 1 p.m. and will be streamed on ESPN+.

NSU (4-8 overall, 2-3 SLC) tries to snap a three-match losing streak against HCU (3-8, 1-4) after dropping a hard-fought 1-0 loss at league-leading Lamar.

Despite the loss, NSU goalkeeper Libe Banuelos made a career-high 14 saves, four more than her previous high of 10, which came earlier this season at LSU.

Banuelos, a junior from Deusto, Basque, Spain, leads the conference in saves (57) and second in saves in league games (24), only trailing Nicholls' Elizabeth Zepeda (28).

In conference games, Banuelos has surrendered just five goals in five games with an .821 save percentage, which is third in the SLC.

HCU enters having lost four consecutive matches, but has been close to breaking through, falling by a single goal in each of the last three contests.

"Houston Christian is a very good team," first-year head coach Ian Brophy said. "They are really strong in the way that they play and try to control possession, playing a similar style we do.

"I think it will be important to be the team that comes out on top competitively and we compete in that matchup. They're a good team that is very organized and looks to play well, so we have our work cut out for us Sunday."

The NSU defense continues to be stingy when it comes to allowing dangerous chances. The Lady Demons have allowed five goals in the past three games but had four shutouts in five games prior to that.

Kyle Morris, a junior defender, thinks the defensive unit clicked immediately.

"For the most part, I think our defense clicked really well to start," she said. "We had a couple captains running practice before the actual start of the regular season, so it was nice to get to know each other that way. I think that we have a cohesive group of girls, so anyone who steps in the back line really clicks with everyone."

Offensively, the Lady Demons are aiming to find a groove, as it hasn't been able to find the back of the net since the third minute at Texas A&M-Commerce.

Last time out at Lamar, NSU recorded eight shots, three of which were on frame. Brophy would like the team to find a way to attempt more shots on goal.

"I think in order to get more chances on frame, it comes down to being intentional about what we're doing and applying what we're doing in training every day and applying what we're doing in the training sessions to the actual games," Brophy said. "In training, we look pretty good in creating chances, so now it will just come down to translating that into game and focusing on the details and doing the right things."

Despite the three conference losses, NSU has been close to breaking through, having a chance late against three teams (Texas A&M-Commerce, McNeese, Lamar) that are a combined 13-0-1 in SLC play.

Taylor Spitzer leads NSU in most offensive categories, including goals (4), points (8), shots (29) and shots on goal (12). Sabrina Lopez has two goals, including a game-winner in the league opener against Southeastern Louisiana.

Lopez is encouraged at some of the chances NSU has created, but they just need to find a way to convert.

"Offensively, it took us awhile to get comfortable with each other and make those passes and have team chemistry, but I think we are on the right track and hopefully we can keep going that way," she said.

Alex Huerta leads the Huskies in goals (4), points (9), shots (30) and shots on goal (15).

The overall series is tied 6-6-1, but NSU is actually 4-2 in Houston against the Huskies. In the last meeting, HCU snapped a four-match losing streak in the series, winning 1-0 in Natchitoches last season. It was NSU's last loss of the regular season. Prior to the defeat, NSU had not lost to HCU since 2018.

The Lady Demons finish a stretch of three consecutive road game at McNeese on Friday before returning home for their final two home contests of the year, beginning with a match against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Oct. 15.