HAMMOND - The Southeastern Louisiana University women's volleyball team (9-12, 3-7 Southland Conference), fresh off Monday's 3-0 nonconference win at Alcorn State, will resume their longest road trip of the season when they return to SLC competition with a visit to Central Arkansas (14-7, 6-4 SLC) on Thrusday.
The Lady Lions, who are looking for their first conference tournament berth since 2002, enter Thursday's tilt in Conway, Ark. tied with Northwestern State for the eighth and final tournament spot. However, Southeastern will face some stiff competition to its postseason aspirations as the Lady Lions prepare for the second match of a six-match roadtrip on Thursday.
"Central Arkansas is a very good team," head coach Julie Langford said. "They have a good mix of youth and experience and they are playing very well right now, and going into their home court is going to be tough."
Despite facing a hostile environment on Thursday, and in its next four matches, the Lady Lions remain confident.
"These roadtrips are going to be a challenge, and all we can do is get out their and play the best volleyball we can one game at a time," Langford said. "We have some things that we want to do at Central Arkansas and we need to play the way we did against Northwestern State in our first matchup. If we play the way we're capable of, we should be very competitive."
Following Thursday's contest at Central Arkansas, Southeastern will head to Northwestern State for a 4 p.m. matchup on Saturday. The Lady Lions will look for a season sweep against the Demons after claiming the opener between the two in-state rivals 3-1 back on Oct. 3.
Road matches at SLC West rivals Texas A&M Corpus Christi (Nov. 7) and Texas-San Antonio (Nov. 8), followed by a makeup date at Southern (Nov. 11) loom on the horizon before the Lady Lions return to Hammond to conclude the 2008 regular season.
First serve between the Lady Lions and the Bears is set for 7 p.m. in Conway, Ark. on Thrusday. Live stats will be available on www.LionSports.net.
