Nicholls volleyball team faces tough slate of games over another six-day stretch

It’s another three games in a six-day span for the Nicholls volleyball team.

The Lady Colonels will host McNeese State at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday before traveling to Hammond to take on Southeastern Louisiana on Thursday and then return to Thibodaux to take on Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Saturday morning.

“Three games, but it’s nice to be at home for two of the three,” Nicholls coach Jonea Rima said. “It’s the end of the season so everything is coming together.

“Now is the time to be playing your best volleyball. I honestly think that we have been playing some of our better games in the last couple of weeks. I think the best is kind of to come, but we’re in a nice position to start peaking at the right time. We have a tough week, but it could be a very successful week as well.”

Nicholls, 1-10 in the Southland and 3-18 overall, opens the week by taking on a McNeese team that is 8-3 in the SLC and 10-14 overall entering the week. The first time the teams met, the Cowgirls won in four games.

The Lady Cowgirls’ Megan Grose is third in the SLC in assists with 579. Bailey Tillman leads the conference in digs with 428. Carissa Chainey is third in the league in kills with 279.

“McNeese, I would say, is kind of middle of the pack,” said Rima. “Their setter (Grose) is really nice. They ran a faster ball to the outside that’s been pretty successful against most teams they have played. We took a set off of them over there. I think we are playing a little bit better than two or three weeks ago when we played them. I think we are having a bit more contribution from and everyone has been able to contribute a little bit better. If we can run our middles a little bit more successfully, we will see some more success with McNeese.”

Southeastern is 11-1 in the SLC and 20-4 overall.

Gracie Duplechein leads the conference with 622 assists. Kailin Newsome is second in the league in kills with 327. Jacqueline Arrington is third in blocks with 89.

“They’ve had a great season,” Rima said of the Lions. “They have a lot of depth and seniority on their team. They had some great wins this year outside of conference, which has really kind of pushed them forward. It will always be a tough game against them, but I think the girls are ready for some good competition as well.

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi is at the top of the conference standings along with Southeastern Louisiana. The Islanders are 10-1 in the SLC and 15-8 overall.

Kyndal Payne leads the SLC in kills with 322, while teammate Leah Stolfus is ninth with 236. Belle Morgan is second in the league in assists with 835. Kyla White is fifth in digs with 307.

They are definitely a bigger team than Southeastern. They run the ball a little bit faster. Their setter is really good, very dynamic with dumps and being very aggressive,” said Rima.

The game will be played at 11 a.m. on Saturday. The early game on Saturday is part of the three games in six days stretch, but helping Nicholls is the fact to are at home and the road contest is in nearby Hammond.

“In this conference, it’s something you just have to be ready for for the Saturday mornings,” Rima said. “Thursday, it’s fortunate that we are only an hour-and-a-half from Southeastern, so we are not getting back super late like some other conferences when you get in at 4:00 in the morning and then turn around and playing at 11:00 game in less than 24 hours. That’s at least a benefit for us.

“The early mornings are always tough. Sometimes you can get wins on teams just because they are not awake. It just depends on how fast you move in the morning.”