Last weekend, the Nicholls State University Colonels volleyball team played the University of New Orleans Privateers and won the match in three straight sets.

As a team, the Colonels had 38 kills and only seven errors. The leading scorer for the Colonels was outside hitter Kaci Eaton with 10 kills, two blocks and one ace.

The Colonels were coming off a close five set loss entering Saturday’s game, and bounced back to defeat the Privateers decisively in three sets.
“We were really consistent, we started off well and we were able to keep it going for three sets,” Eaton said.

The Colonels dominated in all three sets winning the first and third sets by a score of 25-11, and the second set by a score of 25-13.
Coach Tommy Harold said, “We don’t need to play perfect, but we’ve got to approach our abilities and talents and do it consistently.”

“I don’t think that we showed a whole lot of weakness. I think that when we win by 12 or 13 points in every set, that’s pretty solid,” Harold said.
The Colonels dominated the floor early and often, and played virtually error-free.

“We served really well, we hit really well and we played smart defense,” junior setter Alyse Barclay said.

With the win Saturday, the Colonels improved to 9-16 overall for the season, and improved their conference record to 5-7. The Colonels are currently eighth in the Southland Conference, which makes them eligible for the last seed in the Southland Tournament.

Other key players for the Colonels were sophomore Setter Ainsley Marroccoli who had 19 assists, and senior Libero Kalynn Egea who contributed with 17 digs.

Harold said after the match, “I think playing close to the level we are capable of playing at, and being consistent throughout the entire match, its something we talk about during every week of practice.”

“We needed to get the victory over the Privateers because they are really struggling, and it put us in a position to compete for a conference title in the Southland Tournament,” Coach Harold said.

The Colonels are preparing for a three game road trip of all conference opponents beginning with the University of Incarnate Word Cardinals.
The Lady Cardinals enter Thursday’s match with a record of 4-8 in the Southland Conference, and they are currently on a two-game winning streak.
The Colonels are riding a one-game winning streak going into Thursday’s match against the Cardinals. The Colonels will face the Cardinals for the first time this season.

“We hope to get another win to better their conference record as they prepare for the end of the year tournament.” Harold said.

The Colonels have four more matches before the conference tournament with three consecutive matches on the road, and home for the season finale against the McNeese State University Cowgirls on November 15, 2014.