Lady Demon Volleyball | 8/27/2018 2:25:00 PM
NATCHITOCHES – As the 2018 Northwestern State volleyball team grows into itself, it is doing its part to grow the sport.
For the second straight season, the Lady Demons will host an Elementary School Day game – this one at 1 p.m. Tuesday against Jackson State in Northwestern State's home opener.
"It's been a great thing that we've been able to do for the second year now to have the elementary school on campus come in and watch the match," fourth-year head coach
Sean Kiracofe said. "It's fun. The kids have a great time, and we enjoy it as well. Just to get them in front of the sport is great. The city of Natchitoches has done a great job of starting a youth league for volleyball. It will help grow our fan base. It's been fun to be on the leading edge of the sport in this city."
The Lady Demons (0-2) will try to rebound from a pair of losses in the Texas Tech Red Raider Classic in Lubbock, Texas, this past weekend.
Despite the results, Kiracofe said he was pleased with his team's performance in losses to Texas Tech and Rice.
"We did a lot of good things over the weekend," he said. "We expected a little bit more, but we went in there down two starters. Even though we were frustrated with some of the results, I thought we did a lot of good things, like having a freshman setter (
Skylar Besch) go in and get the first start of her career. To do what she did was fantastic."
Besch handed out 35 assists in NSU's first two matches, settling into her college career.
She set up an efficient two matches for senior middle blocker
Madeline Drake, who knocked down 10 kills against only one error against Texas Tech and Rice.
Tuesday's matinee matchup with Jackson State (1-3) opens a four-match week for Northwestern State, its only such week of the season.
The Lady Tigers had a busy weekend at the SWAC/MEAC Challenge in Atlanta, opening with a four-set victory against South Carolina State before falling to Gardner-Webb (3-2), North Carolina A&T (3-1) and North Carolina Central (3-2).
NSU and Jackson State met in 2017 with the Lady Demons sweeping the Lady Tigers during the Troy Invitational. Despite grabbing a sweep, Northwestern State remembers just how tight the first two sets of that match were.
"Jackson State is going to be good," said Kiracofe, whose team eked out the first two sets of that match 25-23 and 25-21 before clinching the match with a 25-11 third-set decision.
"We played them last year, and it was a tough match. We won in three, but we had to earn it. It should be a fun one."
Tuesday's match is Northwestern State's lone home match until opening Southland Conference play on Sept. 20 against Incarnate Word.
