Southeastern’s volleyball team became SLC regular season champions for the first time in school history after defeating Lamar on Senior Night.
On Thursday, Nov. 9, the Lady Lions (25-4, 16-1 SLC) beat Lamar (2-26, 2-15 SLC) in three straight sets (25-21, 25-13, 25-10) in the Pride Roofing University Center. The Green and Gold team clinched the SLC’s No. 1 seed and won the SLC regular season title on Senior Night.
The night started with celebrating the seniors: libero/defensive specialist Ansley Tullis, setter/defensive specialist Calli Collins, middle hitter Jacqueline Arrington and outside hitter Kailin Newsome.
Head Coach Jeremy White shared clinching the regular season championship on the same day as Senior Night was a special occasion.
“Our team controlled the game,” said White, reflecting on their advantages against Lamar. “We created some chaos on the other side of the net and they didn’t handle it as well as we did.”
The celebration had an emotional impact on the team that resulted in a tight first set (26-21). Lamar was leading 9-6 when Southeastern turned the tables and got the lead 13-10, which they kept until the end of the set.
During the game, junior outside hitter Cicily Hidalgo led the Lady Lions with 13 kills and six blocks, followed by Newsome, who had 12 kills and three aces against Lamar. Junior middle hitter Hannah Brewer finished the match with a 0.714 attack percentage, 10 kills, four blocks and three aces.
Arrington said she was confident in her team and their capabilities.
“We worked so hard for so long so it’s really nice seeing it all pay off. No matter who we play, we have the same mindset and that’s our strength,” Arrington said.
Southeastern swept the Cardinals with 48 successful attacks. They finished the game with a 0.365 attack percentage and only committed 10 errors out of 104 total attacks. The Lady Lions won overall 61 points across all sets compared to Lamar’s 32. The Lions had eight aces, five blocks, 43 assists and 45 digs during the game.
For Tullis, Thursday was her last night playing at the PRUC in Hammond.
“This was the last time we were all playing together in here so it was special. We are celebrating tonight, but we have to move past that and get ready for the next game in the Southland Conference Tournament,” Tullis said.
The Green and Gold faced McNeese (15-16, 13-5 SLC) in the Legacy Center in Lake Charles on Saturday, Nov. 11, for their final SLC regular season game, beating the Cowgirls 3-1 (25-21, 25-20, 16-25, 25-20).
SLU (26-4, 17-1 SLC) ends the regular season on a historic 20-game winning streak and has won the most games in program history since the 1996 squad amassed 28.
Four losses are also the fewest in a season in program history, while 17 SLC wins are the most since joining the conference.
The 2023 Southland Conference Volleyball Championship Tournament will occur Nov. 16-19 in Corpus Christi, Texas. The goal of the Lady Lions is to defend their title and secure a ticket to the NCAA Division I National Championship Tournament.
“We have to take everything seriously and forget all about the past games. I feel pretty confident in our ability to win the SLC Championship again,” Tullis said.
With the No. 1 seed in hand, Southeastern will receive a two-round bye and will play their first tournament game in the semifinals on Saturday, Nov. 18 at 2 p.m.
The SLC Championship match is scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 19 at 2 p.m. should the Lady Lions advance on Saturday.
Stay tuned to The Lion’s Roar for any further SLU volleyball coverage.
