HAMMOND, La. – After ending the first week of Southland Conference play with a win, the Southeastern Louisiana University Volleyball team will wrap up its seven-match road swing with a pair of contests against Northwestern State and East Texas A&M.
 
Southeastern (4-11, 1-1 SLC) is coming off a five-set victory over Lamar Saturday. The Lions will take on the Demons (9-8, 1-1 SLC) on Thursday, Oct. 1, at 6:30 p.m. in Natchitoches, La. SLU will conclude the week in Commerce, Texas, where the team will visit East Texas A&M (7-8, 1-1 SLC) on Saturday, Oct. 3, at 11 a.m. The matches will be televised on ESPN+.
 
After leading the Lions with a 23-kill performance in the team's win against the Cardinals Saturday, Kyra McKelvey will look to improve on her season-best performance. McKelvey remains one of the most prominent players in the SLC, averaging 3.21 kills per set to rank fourth in the league. Ashley Richardson also capped the first week of conference play with a double-double performance, tallying 26 assists and 13 digs at Lamar. Richardson's 7.59 assists per set is the fourth-highest average in the Southland.
 
Audrey Vielguth recorded her first career double-double Saturday, totaling 10 assists and 14 digs in the match. Ainsley Driska and Keira Beverly are among the top middle blockers in the conference. The senior ended last week with 13 kills and 10 blocks. The redshirt sophomore totaled a dozen kills and six blocks in the last two matches. Both Driska and Beverly have helped the Lions become the top team in the conference in blocks per set (2.13).
 
The Demons have put together a solid start in 2026. NSU has won eight of its last 10 matches, including a seven-match win streak in non-conference play. Most recently, the Demons split last week's SLC road matches with a win over HCU and a loss to UIW.
 
NSU's Elsie Sanchez (3.27 kills per set) and Olivia Nzioki (3.13 kills per set) have been two of the best attackers in the conference, owning the third-best and eighth-best kills-per-set averages in the league. Statistically, Jade Longlad has been the top setter in the SLC, averaging 9.38 assists per set and totaling 525 assists through 17 matches. Emmarie McFarland's 4.98 digs per set rank second in the SLC.
 
Like Northwestern State, East Texas A&M's first-week SLC matchups were a loss to UIW and a win over HCU. As a team, East Texas A&M leads the conference in hitting percentage (.223). The Texas-based Lions (2.00) rank second in the SLC, behind SLU, in blocks per set. East Texas A&M has been the best serving team in the league, with 2.05 aces per set. Ariana Brown (2^nd), Haley Mullaney (3^rd), Jill Vinal (4^th), and Rendi Fetty (8^th) have been among the top-10 in service aces in the conference, totaling 80 aces between the group.
 
Next week, the Lions will return to Hammond, America, to host a pair of matches. The week will begin Thursday, Oct. 8, at 6:30 p.m., when Southeastern hosts McNeese (4-9, 0-2 SLC) in the University Center. On Saturday, Oct. 10, at 12 p.m., SLU will take on Nicholls (7-8, 0-2 SLC). Both matches will be televised on ESPN+.
 
SLU's match against McNeese will be Pink Out night. Fans are encouraged to wear pink at the game to help support breast cancer awareness. Saturday's match will be Alumni Day. Southeastern is inviting its fans to the match, where it will welcome back its former Lions to the University Center.
 
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
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