NACOGDOCHES, Texas—One rivalry game gives way to another, as the red-hot Northwestern State soccer team travels to play Stephen F. Austin on Sunday to cap off the weekend.
Kickoff is at 1 p.m. at the SFA Soccer Field. Fans can watch the game on ESPN+ if they are unable to attend it in person.

"This will be another really tough game," head coach Ian Brophy said. "Rivalry games are always tough. It doesn't matter how the teams are playing or what the form is or the records are. You can throw it all out the window for these big rivalry games.

"This game is always a big one. We're excited for this one and we're going to always try to push that tradition and we are going to be really motivated for it."

NSU (4-5, 1-0) is coming in following an emotional 2-0 home win over Lamar this past Thursday, its fourth consecutive victory after losing the first five. It was also the eighth straight Southland Conference-opening win for the Demons and broke the record for longest unbeaten streak at home in program history (14).

SFA (4-7, 1-1) saw its three-game winning streak end Thursday when it fell 3-2 at McNeese.

Regardless of the records, whenever these teams play, it always seems to be close, including last season's scoreless draw in Natchitoches.

In the last nine matchups, NSU is 2-5-2 against SFA, but seven of the nine meetings have been decided by one goal or fewer and six of the games were either 1-0 or 0-0.

In a battle between two of the teams expected to compete for the conference crown, Emily Gundin scored her sixth and Riley Stern her fourth of the season against Lamar.

Paige Baumgartner and Tiana Cruz each had assists in the win over the Cardinals, their fifth and fourth consecutive game with at least one point, respectively.

Despite starting two games, Cruz has been one of the most valuable scorers for the Demons, as she is fourth in points with 11 and her four goals is tied for third.

"If the players coming off the bench can bring the same exact energy as those who are starting, then why not use every single player," Emily Gundin said. "Coach is trying to look over everyone's minutes and not try to overdo anything. This just shows the type of people we have and the depth that we have on this team to be able to do that."

Baumgarter's five-game point streak is NSU's longest streak since N-Club Hall of Famer Erin Hebert also did so in five in a row in 2007 from Sept. 30 through Oct. 14.

Those two assists also put the Demons at 38 helpers this season, already the second-most in program history, just trailing the 44 set in 2005.

But the biggest area Brophy was excited about was the shutout, as Audrey Marfia recorded her first shutout of the season—and first of the season for NSU—and second of her career.

Prior to the loss at McNeese, SFA beat Texas Southern and Jackson State before winning its first Southland game against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 2-1.

Alyce Chappelle leads SFA in both goals (5) and points (11) and Lucie Platt has four goals and two assists for 10 points.

Following the game, the Demons travel to San Antonio for a battle with UIW on Thursday before coming back home for a game with East Texas A&M on Oct. 8.