Oct. 3, 2009

Box Score

NATCHITOCHES, La. - The Demons claimed a first set win, but the Colonels rallied with wins in the next three frames as the Nicholls State University volleyball team (6-10, 1-2 Southland Conference) picked up its first conference victory of the season with a 3-1 (22-25, 25-22, 25-19, 25-23) win over Northwestern State on Saturday.

Three Colonels posted double-digit kills as Nicholls rallied to rebound from a Thursday night loss at Central Arkansas to split its first road trip of the conference season. Sophomore outside hitter Rachel Yezak led the way for the Colonels by posting a double-double with ten kills and a team-high 14 digs. Meanwhile, senior Manieka Golden added 14 kills and freshman Jennifer Brandt added another dozen to pace the Nicholls offense.

"It feels great to get our first conference win, especially on the road," head coach Chris Laird said. "Northwestern State always plays us tough at home and they played well in the first set. But we responded and we played pretty well. Its nice to get a win on the road, and hopefully this will help us get ready for a pretty athletic Jackson State team on Tuesday."

The Colonels opened up strong by out-hitting the Demons .243 to .195. However, 11 Nicholls errors proved costly as Northwestern State pulled away for the 25-22 opening set win.

Fortunately, Nicholls responded with 25-22 win in the second set to even the match at 1-1. Yezak, Brandt and freshman Jessica Addicks each hit over .500 and the Colonels posted a .324 team hitting percentage to square the match.

Nicholls picked up steam in the third, posting a .300 hitting percentage. Golden led the way with four kills in the third and senior Amy Whitehead and freshman Jasmine Harris combined on a pair of blocks to keep the Demon attack off-balance in a 25-19 win to take a 2-1 advantage.

The Demons tried to rally in the fourth, limiting the Colonels to just seven kills. However, Nicholls managed to take advantage of 18 fourth-set errors by the Demons to pull away for a 25-23 win and a 3-1 victory.

The Colonels will return to Nicholls on Tuesday to host the Jackson State Tigers with a 7 p.m. first serve set for Stopher Gym.