NATCHITOCHES – Coming back home is just what the doctor ordered for the Northwestern State tennis team. 

NSU (2-2) has won back-to-back contests at home after losing its first two on the road. The Lady Demons aim to continue their home dominance as they play their third match of long 12-match homestand against Sam Houston on Friday. 

The match begins at 11 a.m. at the Jack Fisher Tennis Complex. 

NSU is coming off a pair of home wins this past weekend against LSU-Alexandria and Southern Miss. 

"I want to see our girls execute what we are practicing," head coach Marcos Morelli said. "We have been working a lot in doubles and we are executed to show what we have in that aspect." 

Ayu Ishibashi is continuing right where she left off last season. She is 3-1 in singles at the No. 4 position. She cruised to a 6-1, 6-0 win over Southern Miss, putting up the first point for the Lady Demons to get the ball rolling en route to the victory. 

Sofi Garcia has been a dominant force on the court in the No. 5 position. She defeated Southern Miss, Angelia Blinova, 6-4, 6-2. 

Freshman Sara Erenda, showed her toughness against USM, clinching the match for the Lady Demons in a three-set thriller when the Golden Eagles were trying to fight their way back. 

Erenda dominated her first set 6-1, before dropping the second 6-3. Entering the third Erenda was down 4-3 before winning 3 consecutive games to give her the 6-4 win to earn NSU the 4-1 triumph. 

Paige Wise, a junior from South Africa, picked up her first singles win of the season against LSU-Alexandria, 6-1, 6-4. Her match against Southern Miss went unfinished. 

"All my matches are really tough, it's a higher level," said Wise. "But that's what I like. I like being out there and competing." 

The Lady Demons are going head-to-head with Sam Houston for the first time since the 2021 season, where NSU lost 6-1. 

Northwestern State leads the Bearkats 34-4 in overall wins. 

Sam Houston (3-1) has wins against Prairie View (twice) and UT Tyler, but lost a close 4-3 match last time out at Texas State. 

The Bearkats are led by junior Megan Basson. Basson was the number one singles player for Sam Houston the past two seasons. She posted a 25-16 career singles record. 

Linn Svaerd, a sophomore from Sweden, won the Aramark SHSU Invitational D Flight singles championship in the fall. 

Following the match, NSU wraps up the weekend by welcoming South Alabama to Natchitoches for a 10 a.m. first serve.