NATCHITOCHES—Three of the Northwestern State seniors have epitomized what it means to be a Demon and are reaping the rewards with being on the brink of a winning season for the first time in nearly a decade.

The three seniors who have been at Northwestern State the longest—Sharna Ayres, Jasmin Dixon and Nia Hardison—have made a major impact throughout their time in Natchitoches.

Those three—along with Mya Blake and Skye Miller—are stepping foot to play for the Demons in Prather Coliseum for the final time Wednesday when they host East Texas A&M to close the regular season.

Tip-off is at 6:30 p.m. and can be watched on ESPN+.

The group will be honored prior to Wednesday's contest.

With a victory, the Demons finish the regular season with a winning record, as they head to the SLC Tournament, which begins Monday in Lake Charles.

The trio has aided the resurgence of the Lady Demons program, leading them to 14 wins and counting after only recording one season of more than 11 victories since 2017-18.

"I have to give a lot of credit and a lot of thanks to everybody, but to Jasmin and Sharna," head coach Anna Nimz said. "They came after that COVID year in which we went 1-19, they trusted the process and have gotten better. They were the first kids I had for three years and now the first ones I have had for four. It is great having some true program kids in an era where program kids are pretty hard to come by.

"I am pretty grateful for them and the leadership they have shown and the consistency they have shown to continue to allow us to get better every single year and I hope they are proud of themselves because where we were when they got here to where we are now, a lot of positive things have happened. I am grateful for this senior class."

During that time, both Ayres and Dixon have rocketed up the charts in the 3-point field goals made and blocked shots, respectively.

On the defensive side of the ball, Dixon and Hardison have been the key cogs in one of the Southland Conference's best units.

During SLC play this season, the Demons have surrendered just 58.9 points per contest, the third-best mark in the league, as well as posting the top field goal percentage defense during conference games at 35.5 percent, just ahead of conference regular season champion Southeastern Louisiana.

At the back line of that stellar defense is Dixon, the 6-3 force who has been with the Demons for four seasons following a transfer from Prairie View A&M.

Her 42 blocks overall are second in the conference and 27 blocks during league play ranks fifth. In her previous three seasons, she has finished in the top seven in the league in rejections, including a conference-best 38 in her first year with Northwestern State in 2021-22.

Arguably her best career performance came during non-conference play this season, as Dixon recorded career highs in both blocks (6) and rebounds (16) against Central Arkansas.

Last season, Dixon became the seventh player in Demons women's basketball history to reach 100 total blocks. Her 144 total blocks are fifth in school history.

The year before she showed up, Northwestern State ranked last in both overall points per game allowed (77.5) and conference points per game allowed (72.5). In her first season with the Demons, the defense cut that down to 63.5 overall and 64.8 in conference.

While Dixon has the stats to back up her defensive prowess, Hardison just goes about her business and defends the best guard on the opposition.

Hardison was a big reason why the Demons defense held Houston Christian's Erin Maguire and UIW's Myra Bell to a combined 11 points the last two contests on 4-of-19 shooting from the field and 1-of-6 from deep.

"Nia has a tough job," Nimz said. "It doesn't always hit the stat book, but she is constantly guarding a No. 1 on the opposing team and we can't do a lot of what we want to do defensively without her on the court. She's a tough kid, she's a fighter and she is going to do her best to guard her yard and hold her ground. I've been really happy to have her two years."

Her perimeter defense has been top notch, as she helps Northwestern State to fifth nationally in 3-point percentage defense, allowing teams to shoot a mere 26 percent from deep.

While she doesn't rack up the stats on the defensive end as much as Dixon, she can do that as well, recording 18 steals this season, including five games of multiple thieveries.

The inside-outside duo defensively has helped build the Demons defense into one of the best units in the Southland.

While Hardison and Dixon lock it down defensively, Ayres has been lethal throughout her career from the outside.

In her four seasons at Northwestern State, she been one of the more lethal shooters from the outside in the league, making 194 3-pointers for the fourth-most in program history. She has a chance to become just the fourth Demon in program history to bury 200 3-pointers.

Showcasing her 3-point prowess, Ayres has made three or more 3-pointers in a game 39 times in her career, including 11 times this season, and had 17 games where she made four or more. She set her career best with seven made triples at Texas A&M-Commerce in 2023 when she went 7-for-9 from beyond the arc.

A valuable player and team leader, Ayres has started 95 games in her career and when she steps onto the court for her last game at Prather Coliseum, it will be overall game No. 100 for her at Northwestern State.

Averaging double figures in points in each of her last two seasons, she is scoring at a 10.8 points per game clip this year, including making six triples and pouring in a season-high 23 points in a victory over rival McNeese.

With a run in the SLC Tournament, she could become the 28^th member of the 1,000-point club at Northwestern State. She has 915 with the Demons and 919 overall during her career.

The senior group aims to lead the Demons to their first regular season winning season in nearly a decade before heading off to Lake Charles for the SLC Tournament, which begins Monday against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.