HAITTIESBURG, Mississippi—Following a brief stint at home, the Northwestern State soccer team heads back on the road to face Southern Miss on Thursday.

The match begins at 4 p.m. and is being streamed on ESPN+.

NSU (0-3) had a valiant comeback attempt fall short last time out in a 2-1 loss in the home opener against Rice this past Sunday, scoring for the first time on the year and having several others either hit the post or stopped just before crossing the goal line.

In the final 27 minutes, the Lady Demons attempted seven shots, many of which nearly found the back of the net.

The first goal of the season for NSU was scored by Caitlin Le Roux from an impossible angle, near the end line, sending it in top left corner of the goal to cut the deficit to 2-1. The tally was the first collegiate goal for Le Roux.

Sophomore defender Annie Stook recorded the assist on the goal, her first point at NSU.

"I was really happy to see us create a lot of chances," first-year head coach Ian Brophy said. "Now obviously we need to work on putting those away and finishing those chances, but that was one positive we can take away as we move forward."

One of the main Lady Demons creating scoring chances is junior Halee Griffin, who is transitioning from being a defender into more of an attacking player in 2023.

Griffin leads the team with five shot attempts this season, including three last time out against Rice.

"It's definitely been an adjustment these past couple weeks having to turn my mind from protecting the goal to scoring goals," Griffin said. "I think over time, we're going to get the hang of things."

On the defensive side of the ball, Libe Banuelos has stopped 12 shots so far this season, tied for fourth in the conference, despite missing the second half at Mississippi State.

Despite playing only 76 minutes as a freshman in 2022, sophomore Jessica Spitzer has become one of Brophy's most reliable players this season, surpassing 76 minutes in each individual game. She is the only player on the team to play all 270 minutes so far this season, including the goalkeepers.
"We're strong, defensively," Stook said. "Obviously we had some weak points against some of the bigger SEC teams, but we've been doing really well in practice, getting condensed and stepping to their own mark and figuring it out as a team."

USM (1-2) is fresh off its first win of the season, a 2-1 home victory against Mississippi Valley State, scoring the deciding goal in the 71^st minute by Adaira Nakano.

"We're going in to play a team that has some confidence coming off its first win," Brophy said. "From that standpoint, it will be similar situation to what we had against Rice.

"This team is obviously really good. They've competed well all year, competing against some of the big schools like LSU and Ole' Miss. We know they are battle tested, similar to how we are. We have our work cut out for us."

In the opener, USM was tied at the half with Ole Miss before the Rebels scored twice in the second half to win the game 2-0.

The Golden Eagles have scored three goals from three different players.

After the trip to Hattiesburg, NSU returns home for its final non-conference home game against Alabama A&M at the Soccer Complex on Sunday.