CONWAY, Arkansas – For the second time in two days Northwestern State faces an opponent for the third time this season. If one of the hardest things to do in sports is beat a team three times in the same season, the Lady Demons already have an edge entering Saturday's match.
 
NSU (20-11) comes off an emotional and dramatic 3-1 win in the Southland Conference tournament opening round against Houston Baptist. A match where all four sets were decided by three points or less, with NSU taking the final three by 25-23 finals each time.
 
Fortunately, their semifinal opponent enters the match following a dramatic five-set win to start their tournament.
 
Sam Houston (17-12) inched past Southeastern Louisiana with a similar dramatic flair to that of NSU. With the match tied at two sets each, Sam needed extra points to take the pivotal third set 27-25. The Lady Lions rallied to win the fourth and made it a 10-9 frame in the fifth after falling behind early, but the Bearkats eventually pulled out the victory.
 
The semifinal match can be watched live through the Southland Digital Network, available by visiting www.southland.org. Links are also available at www.nsudemons.com. 
 
NSU and Sam Houston met on the opening night of conference play, a night where the Lady Demon offense was frustrated by the relentless Bearkat defense, falling 3-1. Nearly a month later in their second meeting, the Sam defense once again was a factor in a more inconsistent offensive showing for the Lady Demons than the previous four weeks with NSU losing in five.
 
With less than 24 hours to settle their emotions and prepare for the third meeting with a team they've lost to twice this season, and a spot in the championship match on the line, the Lady Demons will lean on their senior leadership and experience to carry them.
 
"Experience really comes in to play now," fifth-year head coach Sean Kiracofe said. "If you have a young team and they get hot on the first day and can't absorb a scout into that second day, they can struggle. 
 
"Whereas if you have some experience you can go from day to day, throw out a quick scout, and they can absorb it immediately because they've done it before. It's not the best situation, obviously as a couch you'd like more time to prepare, but tournaments are fun because of that."
 
The opening-round win produced the fifth 20-win season for NSU in program history, the first under Kiracofe, and saw Hannah Brister become the first player in program history to record 500 kills in a season.
 
Brister's dominance all season has made her a target for every defense. The play of Kourtney Seaton in the middle, Alexis Warren on the outside, and Darria Williams on the right opened more and more chances as the match with HBU progressed, leading to the first-round win.
 
The Lady Demons will need that same effort going forward into the semifinals.
 
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