The Northwestern State volleyball team will play its first home match of the season tonight when they host Jackson State at 6:30 p.m. in Prather Coliseum.
The Demons (1-6) are coming off a competitive weekend at the Missouri State Tournament in which they took Indiana State (3-3) to five sets and pushed Missouri State in two of the three sets before falling.
“I think we played three quality programs up there (in Missouri),” said second-year NSU volleyball coach Ben Kaszeta. “Three teams that would probably be at the top of our conference and it was a good test for us. We got better throughout every match and got a little tired on Saturday. But we played our hearts out on Friday. With a young group of kids, learning how to win is hard and learning what the expectations are and how to sustain those expectations.”
Despite the tough record, the Demons have had many bright spots including senior Jade Longlad who leads the Southland in assists per set (8.82). Sophomore Emmarie McFarland is tied for second in the league in total digs at 105 while sophomore Elsie Sanchez in sixth in the conference with 64 kills despite missing Saturday’s contest.
The Demons will meet the Tigers (3-3) for a second straight season. NSU is 11-1 all-time for JSU with its lone loss to the Tigers coming last season at the Golden Eagle Classic in Hattiesburg.
Fans can follow the match on ESPN+ with live stats available at the NSUDemons.com website.