NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State volleyball team knows its season will continue past Saturday's regular-season finale against Sam Houston State.
What it must do now is rediscover a comfort level that has been reset in the past handful of matches.
The Lady Demons will try to do that at 1 p.m. when they host the Bearkats on Senior Day at Prather Coliseum. Prior to the match, Northwestern State will honor its three-player senior class comprised of
Lauren Agan,
Natalie Jaeger and
Bailey Martin. Admission to the match is free thanks to the sponsorship of Red River Mill Federal Credit Union.
Jaeger and Martin each have etched their name in the school record books.
Jaeger currently sits in fourth place in career assists with 2,633 and is seven assists away from recording the seventh season of 1,000 assists in school history. Her current total of 993 ranks eighth in school history. Jaeger needs 11 assists to reach seventh place and is 40 away from taking over sixth place.
Martin's 454-dig sophomore season gives her the sixth-most single-season digs in school history, and her 39 digs against Mississippi State on Sept. 13, 2014 is tied for third in NSU single-match history.
Agan has been a member of two all-tournament teams, earning honors at the 2014 North Texas Invitational and the 2015 Ole Miss Magnolia Invitational.
All three were a part of Northwestern State's first Southland Conference Tournament title-winning team and NCAA Tournament entrant in 2014.
"They've done a lot for us," second-year coach
Sean Kiracofe said. "They've done a tremendous amount for this program. I'm sorry to see them go for how much they meant to the program."
As with all Senior Day celebrations, there will be a focus on the good times and the memories that often can lead to a flood of emotions.
Thankfully for Northwestern State (12-18, 7-8 Southland), a visit from Sam Houston State (15-13, 9-6) should be able to help it balance the inevitable emotional swell.
"We took them to five on the road," Kiracofe said. "We were right there in position to win the match. There's a good chance we'll see them in the (conference) tournament. I'd imagine you're going to be focused no matter what. We have to go out and produce."
The Lady Demons know they will play in next weekend's Southland Conference Tournament after a one-year absence. What they do not know is who they will play or what they will be seeded.
NSU enters Saturday's match as the No. 6 seed, one game behind No. 5 Central Arkansas. The Lady Demons own tiebreakers with McNeese and Lamar, both of whom are a game behind Northwestern State.
Regardless of positioning, the Lady Demons are focused on rediscovering the style of play that helped them post a 6-2 record in the first half of the conference season.
"At this point, it's about getting on track for the tournament," Kiracofe said. "While we've been forced to experiment with a couple of different lineups, it's good to get some people experience. By Saturday, we've got to find a lineup that we're comfortable with so people can become comfortable and have fewer errors than we did (Thursday against Stephen F. Austin)."
