NATCHITOCHES – There could be balance at the end of Northwestern State's second four-game homestand of the season.
 
Should the Demons cap the stretch with a win in Tuesday's 6 p.m. matchup with Grambling, which will air on ESPN+, it would give Northwestern a split of its four straight at home and send the Demons into a road weekend series at UIW with consecutive victories.
 
Adding to the in-state rivalry theme of Tuesday's game, Northwestern (6-6) and Grambling (3-8) squared off in a pair of fall exhibition games in Natchitoches.
 
"You're at a very different point of building and developing your team when you look at playing a game in November versus playing a game right here at the beginning of March," third-year head coach Chris Bertrand. "I think that's the case for everybody. It's not unique to the Demons and to Grambling. What you take from the fall game is you get a chance to look at personnel, and you get a chance to look at style of play, and you get a pretty good idea of how to prepare for the matchup, but I think you're definitely preparing now for a very different type of baseball team than what you prepared for in the fall."
 
The Demons themselves are a different team than they were in that exhibition matchup in the fall. Injuries have kept Northwestern from utilizing its projected starting lineup through the first 12 games of the season.
 
That has allowed different players to step forward when given opportunities.
 
The latest was redshirt sophomore Colton Harrison, whose pinch-hit, two-run home run lifted Northwestern to a 5-4 victory against Southeastern Louisiana in Sunday's series finale. It was Harrison's first home run since Feb. 15 and helped the Demons snap a four-game losing streak.
 
"That's a critical part of what we're doing," Bertrand said. "It's also critical that you try to strike a balance, which is a word we consistently talk about. We try to strike a balance. How do I create opportunities while still continuing to develop our team and discover things about our team while also keeping in mind that our goal and our intention is to win? You have to balance the night itself. You have to balance the circumstances that surround your team, and you have to continue to create opportunities for those guys in our dugout so that we can grow as individual players and continue to grow in a positive direction as a team."
 
Northwestern took a step forward Sunday with the win against Southeastern – its third last at-bat victory of the season.
 
Grambling, meanwhile, has dropped four straight games, but the Tigers will give Northwestern a different look.
 
The Tigers have stolen 12 bases and been caught just twice. By comparison, the Demons' past two opponents – Louisiana Tech and Southeastern Louisiana – had a combined eight attempted stolen bases entering those matchups.
 
"They are going to bring a level of athleticism and a style of baseball in which you're going to be challenged to control the pace of the game," Bertrand said. "We're definitely looking forward to it, because it's going to be a game that we think, at least in preparation, is going to be played in a different way than we maybe have seen the game played in our last four games against Louisiana Tech and Southeastern."
 
Probable Pitchers
Grambling RHP Trevor Esparza (0-0, 8.59) at Northwestern State RHP Kevin Robinson (0-0, 0.00)