NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State Demons' volleyball team plays the third of a four-game Southland Conference homestand Thursday when they take on the league-leading UT-Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros at 6:30 p.m. in Prather Coliseum.

The Demons (10-9, 2-2 SLC) are coming off a straight-set win over the LSU New Orleans Privateers (2-15, 0-4 SLC) in Southland play Saturday afternoon. NSU was led by sophomore Elsie Sanchez with 16 kills.

Senior setter Jade Longlad secured a career milestone passing 1,000 assists. The Calgary, Alberta, Canada native finished the match with 36 assists giving her 1,033 for her Demons' career. Longlad enters Thursday's match with 608 assists and 9.50 assists per set which leads the league in both categories.

Sophomore Emmarie McFarland ranks fourth in the nation in digs with 329, which leads the Southland despite having her 18-game double-digit dig streak broken Saturday.
The Vaqueros (8-7, 4-0 SLC) come to Prather Coliseum winners of five straight games including 19 straight wins in Southland regular season play. UTRGV's last conference loss was to Stephen F. Austin in five sets back on Sept. 27, 2025.

"They're (UTRGV) solid in everything they do," said Demon head coach Ben Kaszeta. "We will try to exploit some weaknesses to make them uncomfortable. But they also aren't unbeatable. They do have some places where we think we can take advantage of it. But they're going to be a lot like Southeastern was last week. They will have an incredibly dynamic left-hander so it's certainly going to be a tough challenge."

UTRGV is led by Ema Petkovic, out of Novi Sad, Serbia, with 193 kills and 3.57 kills per set which leads the Southland. The Vaqueros' sophomore also sets the pace for the conference in aces with 37.

Lana Rnjak is the table setter for the Vaqueros. A 6-foot setter from Pancevo, Serbia, Rnjak is the back-to-back Southland Conference Setter of the Week including last week where she had 12.7 assists per set helping her team to win over Nicholls and UIW.

NSU is just 2-7 all-time against UTRGV with the Vaqueros winning all four since joining the conference in 2024. The Demons' last win over the Vaqueros was back on Aug. 31, 2012, in three sets when they were known as Texas-Pan American.

Fans can watch Thursday'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.