NATCHITOCHES – As Northwestern State opens its Southland Conference baseball slate against a group of extremely familiar faces, it remains focused on finding something it has searched for since opening day.
 
"You have to figure out a way to balance it all out," said third-year head coach Chris Bertrand said of having conference play begin in February. "It is something whether we agree with it or disagree with it, it's here. We have to take everything we've learned through the first nine games and be able to put that into action now in what become very meaningful and very high-stakes baseball games."
 
The first of those 30 high-stakes league games comes at 6:30 p.m. Friday against Southeastern Louisiana at Brown Stroud Field. The three-game series also includes a 2 p.m. Saturday matchup and a 1 p.m. Sunday matinee finale.
 
All three games will air on ESPN+. This weekend's series is the Super 1 Foods Kids Series with face painting, baseball bingo and a performance from the NSU Purple Pizzazz Pom Line on tap for Saturday. Face tattoos for children will be available throughout the weekend and kids will be able to run the bases following Sunday's game.
 
The opening weekend of Southland play will challenge the Demons (5-4) in more ways than one.
 
Not only does Northwestern open the first of its 10 SLC weekend series against the league's defending regular-season co-champions, it also does so against a coaching staff that features four members – head coach Bobby Barbier, assistants Taylor Dugas and Spencer Goodwin and director of pitching and analytics Ethan Francis – who played, coached or did both in Natchitoches.
 
Similarly, first-year Northwestern assistant Sam Taylor spent the past two seasons on the SLU staff, lending even more of a reunion feel to the weekend.
 
"It's a great way to get together for a weekend and celebrate all of what Demon baseball and Southland Conference baseball has done for our lives," Bertrand said. "There's an element of that we take with us. It's going to be great to see our friends and our family members. It's going to be great to compete. The competitor in all of us says even though it's those guys over there – from the time they get here (Thursday) night until Sunday – in the moments that life allows to be normal or normalized, we need to do that and celebrate it. I the three hours on Friday, Saturday and Sunday where it says we need to put our fists up and pound on each other, well then that's what we're going to do.
 
"Our staff feels that way, and I'm confident in saying Bob feels that way. I think that's a great thing. What I've learned from him, what he's meant to me in my life and in my career, and then what it means to compete and discuss that competition, I think that's a great way to start it."
 
This weekend marks the second straight year the Demons and Lions (2-6) will meet to start conference play. A season ago, SLU took all three games from Northwestern in Hammond.
 
Nearly three months later, the Demons knocked the Lions from the Southland Conference Tournament at the same ballpark. The Demons' postseason performance came after they produced a 19-8 conference record following the opening-weekend sweep in Hammond.
 
"It's the compounding effect of it," Bertrand said. "Whether it be the first nine games that have been non-conference games, whether it be the first three games of conference play this year, or whether it be calling upon lessons learned from last year, or whether it be the way we're going to learn from each consecutive Southland weekend or each midweek – how can our team, when someone says play ball, how can we recognize what needs to be done on a given night? Then, from each of those nights, how can we learn, pull value and utilize those things moving forward. At all costs, we want to strike the balance, and we want to say, no matter what the circumstances are, we're going to be the most well-prepared we can be, play as hard and as smart as we can, we'll use whatever happens to take the next steps forward."
 
Series Probables:
Friday: Southeastern Louisiana RHP Brady St. Pierre (0-2, 9.00) at Northwestern State LHP Carter White (0-1, 5.23)
Saturday: Southeastern Louisiana RHP Lakin Polk (0-1, 8.00) at Northwestern State RHP Dylan Marionneaux (0-1, 4.22)
Sunday: Southeastern Louisiana RHP Blake Lobell (0-0, 5.00) at Northwestern State RHP Trent Hillen (1-1, 8.64)