THIBODAUX, La. – The Nicholls State University volleyball team plays two Southland Conference matches this week. First, the Colonels travel to Lake Charles to battle McNeese on Thursday, Oct. 27, before returning home to host Southeaster on Saturday, Oct. 29.

NICHOLLS COURT (4-19, 1-10 SLC):
The Colonels are coming off two home losses but continue to fight hard despite the outcome. The Red & Gray offense features five individuals with at least 100 kills this season. Senior outside hitters Katie Jones and Devon Bright lead the way with 204 and 193, while sophomore outside hitter Trinity Vinzant and senior middle blocker S'mara Riley add 192 and 144. Freshman outside hitter Mackenzie Pryor has claimed 111. Vinzant and Bright add 30 and 29 to the Nicholls scoring. The offense is paced by a trio of setters that has tallied over 180 assists. Senior Lilly Bivens leads the way with 450, followed by sophomore Kendall Battistella (197), and freshman Taylor Heeb (187).

The Colonel defense is anchored by sophomore libero who has claimed 319 digs. Vinzant, Bright, and Bivens have recorded 247, 186, and 163, respectively. Three Colonels have registered at least 50 blocks. Riley has 88, freshman middle blocker Paris Dixon has 60, and Jones has 57 up to this point.

McNEESE COURT (12-13, 8-3 SLC):
The Cowgirls come into the matchup with the Colonels currently tied for first place in the conference by utilizing a stout defense and efficient offense. In conference play, they rank first in opponent hitting percentage (.163) and digs per set (19.22), third in assists per set (12.41) and blocks per set (2.23), and fourth in hitting percentage (.213), and kills per set (13.27).

The McNeese attack features a trio of players that have recorded at least 150 kills this season. Senior opposite-side hitter Kendall Guleck leads the way with 290 while averaging 3.12 per set which is the third-best mark in the SLC during conference play. Junior outside hitter Nerja Hanic has posted 218 kills, while the league's most efficient attacker freshman middle blocker Sanni Rantanen has accumulated 157 while hitting .379 in conference play. Rantanen has added 31 service aces to the scoring. The McNeese attack is paced nicely by setters graduate student Mia Perales and senior Dejah Dade, who has tallied 548 and 312 assists, respectively.

Defensively, the Cowgirls are anchored by sophomore libero Bailey Tillman and senior libero Lizzy Low who have registered 455 and 321 digs this year. Tillman ranks second in the SLC in digs per set at 5.34 making her one of two individuals averaging more than five. The McNeese defense also features three players with at least 80 blocks. Rantanen and Guleck have recorded 107 and 91, while sophomore outside hitter McKenzie Moore has added 85 thus far.

SOUTHEASTERN COURT (17-6, 7-4 SLC):
The Lady Lions are currently in a three-way tie with UNO and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi for third place in the SLC. In conference play, they rank first in service aces per set (1.84), and second in assists per set (13.43) and kills per set (14).

The Southeastern attack is paced by setters sophomore Gracie Duplechein and freshman Peyton Stokely who has tallied 505 and 323 assists this season. The main benefactor from their passes is junior outside hitter Kailin Newsome and sophomore outside hitter Cicily Hidalgo, who has recorded 291 and 222 kills. In SLC play, Newsome ranks second in kills per set (3.95) and Hidalgo ranks fourth (3.11). Stokely and Newsome have added 27 and 26 service aces to the scoring.

Defensively, the Lady Lions are anchored by junior libero Ansley Tullis and Newsome who have 328 and 204 digs, respectively. Sophomore outside hitter Hannah Brewer leads the team in blocks with 74.

STAY SOCIAL
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