NATCHITOCHES – Against a conference-leading team, Northwestern State first-year head volleyball coach
Sean Kiracofe knew his team needed a strong performance from start to finish.
Northwestern State made a late push Saturday afternoon against Southland Conference-leading Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in Prather Coliseum, but it came too late as the Islanders picked up a 3-0 sweep for their sixth straight Southland Conference victory.
Northwestern State dropped its fifth straight match, falling to 3-17 overall and 1-6 in conference play.
"They are very consistent," Kiracofe said. "They are good all the way across the net. They are good across the back row. You take one thing away from them, and someone else will step up and score."
The Islanders (18-4, 6-0) spread their offense around with Brittany Gilpin and Morgan Carlson leading the way with eight kills apiece.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi enjoyed an efficient start to the match, hitting .360 as it won the first set 25-17.
In the second set, Northwestern State knocked almost 100 points of the Islanders' hitting percentage before falling 25-18.
NSU made some changes after the first set, including moving outside hitter
Lauren Agan to more of a defensive role. Agan compiled a match-high 12 digs, setting a season high in the process.
"We started out pretty rough on the back row in set one, so we made some changes," Kiracofe said. "We flipped our outsides and put Lauren back there in the L2 position. She's more offensive at the net, but we needed her back there today, and she made the adjustments."
The visiting Islanders appeared ready to make the third set a blowout, going up 24-17 after a Northwestern State service error.
Glynna Johnson's kill off a set by
Natalie Jaeger (28 assists) set in motion a 5-0 run that included a pair of tandem blocks by Johnson and freshman
Reagan Rogers, who made a quick impact in her lone set of the match.
An NSU attack error ended the match, but Northwestern State took some momentum away from the 25-22 third-set loss.
"(Rogers) was very smart with the ball and took the opportunities presented to her and did some good things with them," Kiracofe said. "That was good to see."
Northwestern State completes its three-game homestand Tuesday night against Stephen F. Austin. The 7 p.m. match will be an Orange Out with proceeds from the match going to support the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Natchitoches resident Wes Rollo, who is battling leukemia, will serve as NSU's honorary team captain Tuesday night.
