NATCHITOCHES – Coming from the volleyball hotbed state of Texas instilled a love for the game in Sean Kiracofe.
 
Now the second-year head coach is doing his best to do the same in northwest Louisiana.
 
Kiracofe's Northwestern State team will put its second-place standing in the Southland Conference on the line Saturday at 1 p.m. when it hosts Southeastern Louisiana at Prather Coliseum on "Team Day."
 
Numerous high school volleyball teams are expected to take in the match, a nod to the growth the sport has enjoyed in this area.
 
"In the northern part of the state, volleyball is really growing," Kiracofe said. "To get them in the gym, be around them and help grow the game is going to be a fun thing. To be part of that is fun for me. It just feels good to be able to help out where I can."
 
Admission to all NSU volleyball matches is free thanks to the sponsorship of Red River Mill Federal Credit Union.
 
The Lady Demons (11-12, 6-2) have had their share of fun to start conference play, having surpassed their 2015 SLC win total at the midpoint of the 2016 league schedule.
 
NSU enters its second straight home match 1½ games behind league-leading Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and a half-game ahead of Houston Baptist and Stephen F. Austin.
 
"We checked things off early in the season, and we're still doing that," Kiracofe said. "There were things we wanted to see – win five-set matches, win on the road, win five-set matches on the road, lose a tough match and rebound to get the next one that weekend. We're doing a lot of those good things."
 
The schedule flips toward a heavier home slate for NSU in the final half of conference play. The Lady Demons play five of their final eight matches at home where they are 3-1 this season.
 
NSU began conference play with a three-match road winning streak.
 
"That's something we talked about, winning on the road and not being dependent on winning at home where we have a great environment at Prather," Kiracofe said.
 
NSU's fast start to conference play can be seen in the conference's individual stats. Freshman Alexis Warren holds top-10 marks in conference play in kills per set (3.72, 2^nd) and service aces per set (0.34, 7^th). Senior Natalie Jaeger is third in both assists per set (10.93) and aces per set (0.41). Freshman middle blocker Kourtney Seaton stands seventh in hitting percentage (.336) while sophomore libero Channing Burleson is eighth in digs per set (4.45).
 
Together, those players will lead the Lady Demons against a Southeastern Louisiana squad that is 3-16 overall but has started conference play 2-4.
 
"They've struggled a little bit," Kiracofe said. "They've had some turnover from last year, and they're starting to figure things out. They beat Lamar, and they've played some other people in conference pretty tough. They just had a five-set match with New Orleans that, on paper, looked like a real battle. We'll see that from them here."