LAKE CHARLES – Northwestern State's postseason run came to a heartbreaking end Saturday afternoon as Stephen F. Austin scored three unanswered runs, including a game-tying home run in the seventh, to claim a 4-2 extra-inning victory over the Demons in the Southland Conference Tournament.
 
Despite outhitting the Lumberjacks (30-25) and getting another complete-game effort from ace Mattison Buster, the Demons (24-29) were unable to capitalize on numerous scoring chances, stranding 11 runners on base in the loss.
 
"We fought the entire game and gave ourselves chances," head coach Jenny Fuller said. "That's the hardest part of this one. We did enough things to win. We hit the ball well, played good defense and got another great performance in the circle. But this time of year you have to come through when you have the chance to score and we didn't do it today.
 
The Lumberjacks struck first after the opening two batters of the game reached on a leadoff triple and a walk. SFA scored on an RBI groundout from cleanup hitter Morgan Wright, but the groundout was the second of seven straight retired by Buster as she quickly settled into another dominant outing.
 
SFA did not record another hit until a leadoff single in the fifth inning and had just one baserunner before that as Buster retired 12 of the next 13 batters she faced following the first-inning walk to Ellie Vance.
 
With Buster dealing in the circle, it was up to the Demons to provide support at the plate. Unfortunately, NSU's recent struggles with runners in scoring position surfaced again on Saturday.
 
The first three batters in the Northwestern lineup reached base in the bottom of the first inning, creating an immediate chance to answer the early deficit. JT Smith drew a walk before Mckenna Rinewalt and Peyton Young followed with singles to load the bases with no outs.
 
A ground ball to third resulted in a force play at home, and consecutive fly-ball outs stranded the first three of the 11 runners left aboard by the Demons.
 
Northwestern had at least one hit in each of the first three innings, with the leadoff knock in the third finally tying the game. Freshman Mckenna Rinewalt launched a no-doubt home run down the right-field line to open the frame, her third of the season and second hit of a three-hit afternoon.
 
"Mckenna has been a real find for us this year," Fuller said. "It's not east for a freshman to set into that two-spot in the lineup and for her to excel in this environment and have the tournament she had says a lot about who she is and what her future can be."
 
The Demons grabbed their first lead two innings later when Brynn Daniel delivered a clutch two-out single to score Rinewalt from second for a 2-1 advantage. NSU again threatened to add on after Aly Delafield worked a five-pitch walk, but another chance slipped away.
 
NSU put the leadoff batter aboard five times in the game but brought that runner home only once. A missed opportunity in the sixth proved especially costly when Sara Kate Booker drew a leadoff walk but was thrown out at the plate on a single by Smith, denying the Demons an insurance run.
 
As Buster continued to induce soft contact and held the Lumberjacks to just three hits through the first 6 2/3 innings, SFA's fourth hit changed the course of the game.
 
One out away from extending the Demon season, pinch hitter Kara Pride connected on a solo home run to tie the game at 2-2 in the top of the seventh.
 
Neither team threatened in the eighth, but a leadoff double in the ninth gave SFA its opening. Two sacrifice bunts scored the go-ahead run, and a two-out RBI single added an insurance run for the final margin.
 
Down to their final out, the Demons mounted one last rally. Peyton Young was hit by a pitch and Daniel reached on an error to load the bases, putting the winning run on first base. The comeback bid ended on a called third strike on the outside corner, closing the game and NSU's season.
 
The Demons left at least one runner on base in seven of the nine innings and finished 0-for-4 with the bases loaded. Across their final five games, NSU went 0-for-12 in bases-loaded situations.
 
Even with the heartbreaking finish to the year, the 2026 season marked a major step forward for the program. The Demons set five single-season team records, ranked in the top 10 in five other categories and had five players place in the top 10 of 21 different single-season record lists, including six records tied or broken.
 
"I'm incredibly proud of this group and what we did this season," Fuller said. "This is just the second year of this rebuild but making the conference tournament was a huge step for us and is just going to propel us further as well continue into the offseason and next year. This hurts right now, but what they accomplished this season laid a foundation and I am very proud of every one of them."