Lady Demon Volleyball | 10/25/2017 9:55:00 AM
NATCHITOCHES – In the midst of its best stretch of play in the three-year
Sean Kiracofe era, the Northwestern State volleyball team starts a home-laden back end of the 2017 season with its annual "1K Day" match Thursday night against Sam Houston State.
First serve for the promotion-laden matchup with the Southland Conference-leading Bearkats is set for 6:30 p.m. inside Prather Coliseum.
The Lady Demons (12-13, 7-3) have won six of their past seven matches, NSU's most successful stretch capturing 11 of 12 matches late in the 2013 season.
NSU will be challenged by a Sam Houston State (13-9, 9-0) squad that leads the Southland Conference by a half-game over Stephen F. Austin.
The on-court pairing should make for an exciting "1K Day," NSU's annual promotion to try to draw 1,000 fans to a volleyball match. In addition to the match between surging Northwestern State and Sam Houston State, there are a wide range of promotions surrounding the match.
Each Lady Demon player will be accompanied by a faculty member who will be recognized during pre-match introductions. There will be a fashion show during intermission during which two $25 LUX Clothing and Accessories gift cards will be raffled off. There will be free pizza for the first 100 NSU students and all fans will be eligible to win a $300 gift card donated by La Capitol.
"Looking at the schedule, going into the year, we were excited to see so many home matches toward the end of the season," said Kiracofe, whose team will play five of its final six matches at home.
"That's great for us. The crowd has been building all year. A lot of it has to do with us being successful at home and putting on a great show. We're hoping to get a great crowd against Sam Houston. We're going to need some help. They're a good team, undefeated (in conference), so anything we can get in terms of a big crowd will be beneficial for us."
The Lady Demons have played four matches at home, going 3-1 with three sweeps in that time frame. In the lone home defeat, NSU pushed Houston Baptist to five sets.
NSU can bank on the lift from its home crowd against a Sam Houston State squad that features a veteran roster led by seniors Jordyn Vaughn, Brooke White and junior Taylor Cunningham. The trio has been responsible for 77.6 percent of the Bearkats' kills (815 of 1,050).
Additionally, White ranks second on the team in digs (236). White is the reigning Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Week while teammate Jaclyn Ward, a setter, earned SLC Offensive Player of the Week honors.
"They constantly produce," Kiracofe said of Vaughn and White. "They're great players who do a lot of different things. They're six-rotation players. They pass well. They block well. They do a lot of different things that provide value. If they're slumping in one area, they can do something else to help the team."
With six regular-season matches remaining, Northwestern State already has equaled its win total and conference win total from the 2016 season.
Junior outside hitter
Reagan Rogers leads Northwestern State with 313 kills while classmates
Madeline Drake (74 block assists, 85 total blocks),
Channing Burleson (421 digs) and
Kathryn Wristen (897 assists) also have posted team-best totals.
That quartet, along with senior
Kylie Spencer, has been with Kiracofe through three seasons and are enjoying their highest level of success both as a team and as individuals.
"It's been little improvements in everything," Kiracofe said. "Pat Riley talked about the impact of being one percent better in every way. We pass a little bit better. We're a little more consistent in a lot of things offensively and defensively."
