Dominant thus far in Southland Conference play, the first-place McNeese State Cowgirls can take command of the title chase over the next two days when they face Southeastern Louisiana, the second-place team.

The Cowgirls (34-12, 14-1 SLC) and Lions (39-11, 14-4) will play a doubleheader at 4 p.m. today and a single game at 2 p.m. Wednesday.

Neither team has lost a Southland series. Southeastern won two of three against Nicholls State last weekend, while the Cowgirls, who have won their last eight games, didn’t play after picking up midweek wins over LSU and Texas-Arlington last week.

Cowgirls head coach James Landreneau said the break in the schedule allowed for a little rest and a chance to get in some work.

“We took Thursday off after playing Tuesday and Wednesday, then had a light practice Friday,” he said. “We did intrasquad and situational scrimmages Saturday and Sunday.”

Both teams play a similar style, featuring quality pitching, deep lineups and aggressive baserunning.

“Their offense puts a lot of pressure on your defense,” Landreneau said of the Lions. “They like to play fast and are relentless. They always play good defense and are a sound team.”

Bailey Krolczyk (.396, 9 HR, 44 RBIs), Cam Goodman (.351, 30 SB) and Maria Detillier (.348, 5 HR, 15 SB) lead the Lions.

Southeastern leads the conference in batting average (.317) and stolen bases (131). McNeese is second in each category with a team batting average of .299 and 119 stolen bases.

The Cowgirls lead the conference in team ERA (2.04) and shutouts (17). Southeastern is second with an ERA of 2.68 and 11 shutouts.

Landreneau said his team will have to limit miscues to try to slow down the Lions.

“Minimizing mistakes will be the biggest thing,” he said. “We can’t allow them to take extra bags and we have to take all of the outs when they are there. They thrive on big plays.”

Whitney Tate (13-3, 0.99 ERA) and Ashley Vallejo (13-7, 2.45) are a combined 12-0 in conference games. Alayis Seneca (.347), Reese Reyna (.328) and Mariana Torres (.325) lead the McNeese offense.

NOTES: Cowgirls catcher Emily Phillips was named SLC Hitter of the Week after going 4-for-6 with two doubles, a home run and three stolen bases in two games last week. Outfielder Erin Ardoin won the award last week. … McNeese has won five of the last six meetings, including the last four.