HAMMOND, La. – The Southeastern Louisiana University volleyball team will close out its road swing with three matches at the Jack Kaiser Volleyball Classic in Queens, New York.
 
SLU (6-1) opens the tournament Friday with a 9 a.m. match versus host St. John's (3-4), before facing Stonehill College (0-5) at 4 p.m. The Lady Lions take on Bryant (5-3) to close the tournament Saturday at 10 a.m. Friday's tournament opener versus the Red Storm will be streamed on flovolleyball.tv.
 
Southeastern enters the weekend with a .256 hitting percentage, as Cicily Hidalgo (.308, 8^th) and Alexis Logarbo (.289, 10^th) rank among the Southland Conference's most efficient players. Hidalgo (3.36, 3^rd) and Kailin Newsome (3.24, 5^th) – the first two Southland Offensive Players of the Week of 2022 - are both near the top of the SLC in kills per set, while the SLU setting combo of Gracie Duplechein (5.20 aps, 7^th) and Peyton Stokley (4.80 aps, 9^th) sits among the league's best in assists per set.
 
Defensively, opponents are hitting a league-low .165 against the Lady Lions, who rank 10^th nationally with 67 team blocks behind the trio of Hannah Brewer (1.24 bps), Crispin Adams (1.14 bps) and Logarbo (1.04 bps). Ansley Tullis tops Southeastern and is sixth in the SLC with 3.76 digs per set.
 
St. John's comes into the tournament looking to snap a four-match losing streak. Giorgia Walther (3.81 kps) and Rachele Rastelli (3.62 kps) provide a productive combo for the Red Storm.
 
Stonehill enters the tournament looking for its first win of 2022. Jentry Allen leads SC with 2.86 kills per set.
 
Bryant has won five of its last six matches heading into the weekend. Haley O'Brien has a team-high 1.07 blocks per set, while Aubrey Lapour (2.55 kps) and Caroline Kennedy (2.31 kps) are the most prolific attackers for the Bulldogs.
 
Following the weekend, Southeastern will return home to host the three-day Battle of the Boot in the University Center. The Lady Lions' first match of the tournament versus Northwestern State Thursday at 6:30 p.m. doubles as their SLC opener. SLU will also face ULM Friday at 6:30 p.m. and Louisiana Tech in a 12:30 p.m. matinee Saturday. Thursday and Saturday's matches will air live on ESPN+.
 
DIGGIN' IT CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the Southeastern volleyball program are encouraged to join the Diggin' It Club. Lion volleyball alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
 
All membership fees and donations to both the Diggin' It Club and S Club (volleyball) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern volleyball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Lady Lions Volleyball, follow @LionUpVB or @JWhiteSLU on Twitter, @LionUpVB on Instagram, like /SLUathletics on Facebook and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.