The Northwestern State women’s tennis team is still unbeaten in Southland Conference competition this spring after scoring a major upset Monday at the Jack Fisher Complex, taking down defending champion Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 4-3.
The victory not only extended NSU’s unbeaten record to 4-0 in conference play, but it also snapped the Islanders’ 28-match winning streak against Southland opponents dating back to 2022, when the Lady Demons last beat them.
The Lady Demons (4-5 overall) claimed victory despite dropping the doubles point to A&M-CC (12-2, 2-1), but then won four of the six singles matches.
“We always talk about processing doubles and staying consistent in singles,” second-year head coach Marcos Morelli said. “After losing doubles, we regrouped, and that is why we stay consistent in singles – if we lose doubles, we still have a chance in singles.”
Tjasa Klevisar set the tone early at No. 3 singles, dismantling Yana Mykytyn 6-1, 6-1 to put NSU on the board.
Zoi Spyrou continued her impressive form at the No. 1 spot, delivering a 6-2, 7-5 win over Ana Veroux to put the Lady Demons in front for the first time.
Northwestern made it 3-1, as Sofi Garcia was dominant at No. 6 singles, rolling past Juliette Jalai 6-0, 6-3 to put the Demons on the brink of the big upset.
The visitors picked up a point when NSU’s Ayu Ishibashi retired due to an injury. She was down in spot No. 5 to Josefa Fuenzalida 6-4, 4-6, 2-5.
The Lady Demons got the decisive point via another three-setter.
Honoka Umeda showed her resilience at No. 2 singles, bouncing back from a second-set loss to defeat Leticia Tarocco 6-1, 2-6, 6-1 to clinch the match for the Lady Demons. It was NSU’s second victory in the last eight meetings with the Islanders, whose associate head coach is former NSU great Olga Bazhanova Moore – a star player for one Lady Demon NCAA Tournament team and head coach of the last one in 2015 before she departed to marry the Islanders’ head coach, Steve Moore.
The Lady Demons hope to maintain this momentum Wednesday when they welcome Rhode Island and previous Lady Demons head coach Jonas Brobeck (2020-22, after two seasons as an NSU assistant) to campus Wednesday with the first serve at 11 a.m.
BASEBALL: Coming off a three-game Southland Conference sweep of UIW, the Demons (8-7) start the second of four double-midweek games this season by hosting Grambling (4-10) at Brown-Stroud Field in a 6 p.m. contest today.
Northwestern ends its longest homestand of the season Wednesday against Mississippi Valley State at 6 p.m. with ESPN+ coverage both nights.
“What you truly want to do is take advantage of the opportunity you have to stay on track with winning ways and the momentum you have built,” second-year head coach Chris Bertrand said.
SOFTBALL: New NSU coach Jenny Fuller has eagerly anticipated today since taking the Demons’ job last July. Her new teams will welcome her alma mater, and former coach and mentor, 1993 NSU graduate Glenn Moore and the Baylor Bears to Natchitoches for a midweek game.
First pitch is for 6 p.m. with coverage on ESPN+. Tickets for the game are available for purchase online at nsutickets.com starting at $10 per person. Moore played tight end for the Demons’ 1988 Southland champion football team while he met his future wife, Campti native and NSU school-record high jumper Janice Miller (Moore).
“It’s a huge honor just to be able to coach against Coach Moore,” Fuller said. “In the softball world, he’s a legend. What he’s done at Baylor and how he’s always stayed competitive there. I’m just really proud to have had the chance to play for him and I’m really excited to play against him.”
Fuller played two seasons for Moore at Baylor from 2008-09, leading the Bears in both wins with 11 and shutouts with three during the 2008 season. She also coached on his staff.
Baylor (11-13) is no stranger to the City of Lights, last visiting to open the 2022 season as part of the Natchitoches Historic District Development Commission Lady Demon Classic. It will be the Bears’ first trip for a midweek game since a doubleheader during the 2017 season.
The two teams played each other multiple times a year for five straight seasons in the mid-2010s.
After his football career ended, Moore played pro softball with The King and His Court for a couple of years, then served as a volunteer softball assistant coach on the staff of N-Club Hall of Fame coach Rickey McCallister for two seasons. He later became head coach at LSU, then moved to Baylor and has more than 1,000 career victories, a national title, four trips to the Women’s College World Series and 19 total NCAA regional appearances.