NATCHITOCHES - The Northwestern State Demons' volleyball team takes on the UIW Cardinals Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. in Prather Coliseum for 'Volleyween' in Southland Conference action.

Fans are encouraged to come dressed in their best Halloween costume for Saturday's match.

The Demons (13-13, 5-6 SLC) are trying to split the season series with UIW (11-9, 9-2 SLC) after falling in San Antonio to the Cardinals 3-1 on Sept. 26.

Fast forward to Friday. NSU is on the heels of one of the wildest matches in recent memory. The Demons defeated the Houston Christian Huskies (5-18, 3-8 SLC) Thursday at home in five sets 15-11. Sophomore Elsie Sanchez set a career-high in kills with 28, which is also a season high for the conference. Senior Jade Longlad also had a career-high 55 assists which tied a conference high mark.

NSU swept the season series over HCU for the first time in program history as they defeated the Huskies on the road 3-1 back on Sept. 24. As a result, the Demons are tied for sixth place with McNeese (9-13, 5-6 SLC) in the Southland standings with just five matches to go coming into Saturday. McNeese, however, owns the tiebreaker over NSU after defeating the Demons 3-0 Oct. 17 in Lake Charles.

The Demons continue to possess some of the league's best at each position led by Longlad who averages 9.48 assists per set, third in the conference. Emmarie McFarland, a utility player, is second in SLC in digs per set with 4.83.

But now the Demons turn their attention to another team that has historically had their number. UIW has won six straight matches against the Demons. NSU is eyeing its first win over the Cardinals since Oct. 7, 2023, when they edged UIW in five sets 15-7.

UIW enters Saturday's match with a four-match winning streak. They also possess their share of individual problems for the Demons under fourth-year head coach Gabby Ording. The Cardinals are led by Kitana Tu'ufuli on the offense end, averaging 3.10 kills per set. Defensively, Ashton Rogers leads the league with 4.80 digs per set, right behind McFarland. Calissa Allison, the reigning Southland Setter of the Week, helps anchor the offense, averaging 6.17 assists per set.

"They're (UIW) a really tough team with a solid libero," said Demon head coach Ben Kaszeta. "They may have the most talented roster in this league top to bottom where they can score from the outside, the middle you name it. They're a well-balanced team where when one person is not playing that well, someone else steps up. We're going to have our work cut out Saturday."

Fans can watch Saturday's match on ESPN+ as Patrick Netherton and Caley Carter will have the call. Live stats will be available at NSUDemons.com while live updates can be found on twitter/X on the NSU volleyball page @NSUDemonsVB.