LORMAN, Miss. - The Alcorn State University volleyball program heads back down to New Orleans Monday as the Lady Braves take on the Loyola Wolf Pack in a 6 p.m. match. Due to renovations still ongoing at The Den, the match will be played at Tulane's Devlin Fieldhouse.
"With this weekend done, we're preparing our girls to be consistent and to continue to compete," said head coach Chelsey Nicholas. "What I really want to see is growth and understanding and that we're continuing to compete at a higher level."
The Lady Braves started their season with losses to New Orleans, Southeast Missouri State, and Fordham in the UNO Invitational last Friday and Saturday. Freshman Fiapaipai Iosia earned All-Tournament Team honors after finishing the weekend with 11 kills, four assists, and 33 digs.
Freshman Octavia Dixon also registered 11 kills, while freshman setter Jasmine Chambers collected 20 assists. Freshman Kaylyn Latin followed Iosia with 28 digs. Junior Alondra Rivera Modesto led the team with three blocks.
Loyola (La.) | Aug. 28 | 6 p.m.
The Wolf Pack is 2-2 after playing four matches at the Dillard Invitational last Friday and Saturday. Loyola started off the Invite with a 3-1 win over Southern University at New Orleans, but fell in straight sets to the host Bleu Devils later that day. On Saturday, the team fell to Huston-Tillotson 3-1 in the morning before rebounding with a straight-set victory against Jarvis Christian.
Malea Howie leads the team with 31 kills, followed by Beatriz Agosto with 28 and Allison Hartmann with 27. Hartmann has a team-high five aces and setter Sunni Blanchard has 63 assists. Kaitlynn Watson concluded the weekend with 48 digs. Defensively, Hartmann has 17 blocks and Tylar Beckham has 12.
Monday is the third meeting between the two programs, with the all-time series tied at 1-1. The teams both won on the road as they split their two games in 2015. Alcorn won on Sept. 9 in five sets, while Loyola took the Sept. 22 contest in straight sets.
Fans can follow the action with live stats here.
Northwestern State | Aug. 30 | 5 p.m. | School Supply Give Away
Wednesday marks the home opener for the Lady Braves and the team will be giving students in attendance school supplies and a signed volleyball poster. Leftover school supplies will be donated to local schools.
The Lady Demons are in search of their first win of the year after a 3-1 loss to Colorado on Friday and straight-set losses to Oklahoma and Seton Hall Saturday at Oklahoma's Nike Invitational.
Reagan Rogers was named to the All-Tournament Team after recording 32 kills, 26 digs, and five aces. Alexis Warren followed Rogers with 25 kills, Kathryn Wristen earned 92 assists, and Channing Burleson made 46 digs. On defense, Madeline Drake has eight blocks and Kourtney Seaton has five.
Alcorn is looking for its first win against Northwestern State as the Lady Demons lead the all-time series 4-0. The teams last met in 2011, with Northwestern State winning in straight sets.
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