NATCHITOCHES – No matter the sport, good teams have solid middles.
 
Whether it be the short stop and second base combo in baseball, a strong offensive or defensive line in football or a rim-protector in basketball, the person, or people, in the middle can make all the difference.
 
That sentiment holds just as true in volleyball and will be put on full display Saturday as Northwestern State (10-6, 3-2) hosts Houston Christian (12-5, 4-0) with some of the best middles in the conference all on one court.
 
First serve is set for 11 a.m. in Prather Coliseum as part of a full home Saturday with the Demon football team hosting Nicholls that afternoon at 3:30 p.m. Live coverage of the volleyball match can be found at www.nsudemons.com/watch or on the NSU Athletics mobile app, a free download in either the Apple or Google stores.

"It's going to be a great match up tomorrow with four of the best middles in the conference," head coach Sean Kiracofe said. "It will be fun to watch them compete against each other both offensively and defensively because who wins those battles could be the determining factor in the match."
 
NSU fans have become quite familiar with the two freshmen middles that have been making waves since the first serve of the season.
 
Reaghan Thompson blocked her way into the record book on the first weekend with 10 blocks, seven solos, in NSU's record-setting 20-block game against Fairleigh Dickinson. Jordan Gamble has been a calm force for the Demons all season and is averaging 8.4 kills and 4.1 blocks per set over the past seven matches.
 
Their presence has allowed NSU to hold either the first or second spot in total blocks per set for the majority of the season. The duo enters Saturday's match averaging one block per set each and NSU ranks just behind Southeastern in team blocks per set at 2.45.
 
Although the true effectiveness of the block can be hard to quantify, according to Kiracofe, because of the varied attempts by attackers actively trying to avoid a good one, there is one part of the middle's role that can be measured – what they do on offense.
 
Saturday's match will feature four player, all that do the majority of their work in the center of the net, that rank in the top five in the conference in attack percentage.
 
Thompson leads the league with a .372 mark, followed by HCU's Jada Allen at .342 and Gamble comes in at fifth best with a .293 percentage. Thompson has been near the top of the list from early in the season, but her recent effectiveness has moved her well into the top position.
 
Over the past two plus matches, a total of nine straight sets, Thompson has not committed a single attack error in more than 35 swings. Over the last five matches she has not had an attack percentage lower than .350 while averaging 8.0 kills per set during that span.
 
NSU's middle duo will square off head-to-head with HCU's Allen, and Anna Gadway, who ranks third in the conference in attack percentage (.319) and leads the team with 3.33 kills per set.
 
"There are going to be situations or matchups where we just have to win them," Kiracofe said. "Some of that will have a lot to do with our ball control and defense. We're going to have to take something away from them and see what happens with their other options.
 
"We're going to be put in situations in a match up where you just have to win it. Things that we are going to have to win so we can figure out how to be productive in the next step."