BEAUMONT – It's a clean slate, all that the past has is lessons. That is the motto of head coach Alan Edwards and the Lamar University volleyball team as they look to getting ready to open the Southland Conference slate, which starts Thursday at 7 p.m. in the University Center at Southeastern Louisiana.
 
"That is the only way you can look at it. We set our non-conference schedule to prepare us for this," said Edwards. "We are going into this as a 0-0 team. We need to be able to go in as a team ready to take it to someone, and that is how we are preparing."
 
 The non-conference slate was a tough one for the Cardinals (0-12), who played four Power Five conference teams in No. 8 Kansas, Mississippi State, Oklahoma and Iowa. Lamar, which hasn't played at home all season, will embark on its fifth state in five weeks when they make a swing through Louisiana to open league play. After SLU, it heads to New Orleans for a 2 p.m. start time Saturday.
 
"We've been through a tough schedule so far with all the Power Five teams along with another good one down the road at Houston," said Edwards. "We've played programs that showed us what teams in our own league will do against us. Now it's just cleaning the slate and moving on."
 
The Cardinals and Lions (1-11) enter the match with similar resumes. The SLU faced rough non-conference schedule that had them pitted against two ranked foes, KU and Purdue.
 
"Southeastern looks an awful lot like us, except they are a little lower error," said Edwards. "They've played a schedule that is comparable to us. They played a tough tournament last weekend that had Kansas in it, so there's a common opponent."
 
The Lions claimed their first match of the season, but have lost 11 since. They haven't played on their floor since Aug. 27.
 
Outside hitter Parrie Hartley tops the Lions In kills with a 2.03 per set mark and has a .155 hitting mark – which is second on the team. It runs a two-setter system, led by Haley Baker's 5.25 assists per set. Defensively, Monica Ramon leads the way with 3.48 digs per set and Rachel Bunn has a 0.61 block number.
 
Also back this season is first-team All-Southland Conference preseason pick Landry Bullock, who's played in nine matches and averages 1.36 kills a set.
 
The Privateers (3-10) also have tendencies that line up with the Cardinals, they are a youthful squad.
 
Freshman Jordan Yauch and sophomore Blessing Dunn battle for the top hitter spot. Yauch has a 2.65 kills mark while Dunn follows at 2.56, but Dunn has one more total kill than Yauch.
 
They fell in all three matches at the Omni Invitational, which featured No. 18 Colorado and Colorado State – both on their own home floors.
 
Setter Sarah Thomas has an 8.70 assist mark, which is seventh in the conference, and is the team's best server with 13 aces. Defensively, Samantha Uline has 3.48 digs a game, followed closely by Dunn at 3.11. Katelyn Guice has the best block number at 0.81 a set.
 
Both the Lions and Privateers will test the Cardinals serve-receive game. New Orleans is third in the SLC at 1.37 aces a set and SLU is fourth with 1.34.
 
At the outset of the SLC season, Chelsea Grant, who was moved from the middle to the left side, leads the charge with 3.24 kills a set and a .191 hitting percentage. Murielle Hlavac follows with 1.56 kills a games in 42 sets. Haley Morton, who was named All-Hawkeye Invitational, has been the leader at setter. She enters with 5.26 assist per set.
 
Defensively, Lauren Stahlman tops the team with 2.56 digs per set and Ivette Dim has been big at the net with just under a block a set.
 
"For this team, it's about us hitting our high point every single day. We're still very young and a group of people trying to learn to bring their best every single day," said Edwards. "If the young kids can do that, we'll be successful in our league."
 
LU ends its run of 15-straight matches on the road at Houston Baptist on Oct. 1 at 1 o'clock at Sharp Gym. Big Red gets home on Oct. 6 against Central Arkansas.