LAKE CHARLES—The McNeese Cowgirls (2-2-0, 2-1-0 SLC) will return to the pitch this weekend as they travel to Incarnate Word (2-2-0, 1-1-0 SLC) on Friday night and Abilene Christian (4-3-1, 0-1-0 SLC) Sunday afternoon. This weekend's road trip will be the first two Southland Conference road matches for the Cowgirls. Live stats will be available on the McNeese Athletics website at McNeeseSports.com.
 
Last weekend McNeese went 1-1 at home in a two-match weekend that saw a 3-1 win over Houston Baptist and a disappointing 3-0 loss against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. 

"We have to move the ball much better than a week ago," said head coach Drew Fitzgerald. "Luckily we are a bit healthier for Friday and on Sunday we will get two more players back." 

The Pokes lead the all-time series 4-2-1 against the Cardinals, one of UIW's wins came in 2019 by a 2-0 decision in Lake Charles. Incarnate Word's last outing was on Sunday afternoon in a 1-0 loss to Stephen F. Austin that was decided by a penalty kick in the 73rd minute.  

"UIW is off to a great start and has really left their mark on every match, including their one loss," said Fitzgerald. "They are very difficult to play against and apply a ton of pressure." 

McNeese has a 5-4-1 all-time match advantage against Abilene Christian and rallied back to defeat the Cowgirls 2-1 in 2019. ACU's last outing was also a loss to SFA on Friday night that ended 2-0.  

"ACU is always a top team. The hallmarks of their squads are organized, tough defending and a balanced attack," Fitzgerald added.  

The Cowgirls will be on the road again next weekend when they visit Southeastern Louisiana Friday before traveling to Louisiana-Lafayette for an exhibition match next Sunday.