BEAUMONT, Texas - Returning to the friendly confines of McDonald Gym for the first time since Sept. 10, Lamar University's volleyball team (5-7, 0-2 SLC) will very busy at home this weekend. The Cardinals will host two teams atop the SLC standings; Stephen F. Austin (14-1, 2-0 SLC) on Thursday and Abilene Christian University (4-8, 2-0 SLC) on Saturday.

The Last Time Out - At Southeastern Louisiana - September 28

Fighting in every set, Lamar again came up just short in volleyball, losing in four sets at Southeastern Louisiana (6-9, 1-1 SLC). The Cardinals stayed within a couple of points in each set, but the Lady Lions had just enough to take the decision.

Abigale Nash had her ninth double-double of the season with 13 kills and 14 digs. Bre'Ala Box and Kayla Neumann each had an additional eight kills, and Neumann also had two aces and 13 digs. Erin Pequeno continued to lead the defensive effort with 19 digs, and Annika Slovak had 34 assists. Malaysia Murdock had four blocks with Box getting an additional three.

Lamar vs. Stephen F. Austin - October 3 - 7 p.m. - McDonald Gym

Stephen F. Austin has been one of the best volleyball programs in the Southland for the better part of three decades with at least 20 wins in each of the past five seasons and 10 SLC regular season championships. The Lady Jacks blazed through a 16-0 conference run in 2018, losing just six sets in SLC play, and have not lost a conference match since Oct. 31, 2017, against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.

This season SFA is 14-1 overall and 2-0 in SLC play with three-set wins over A&M-Corpus Christi and UIW - both at home. The Jacks' lone loss of the season came at Arkansas State, a closer than its appears four-set decision.

Debbie Humphreys, a seven-time SLC Coach of the Year, is in her 32nd year with SFA. She has a record of 708-340 in that time.

Stephen F. Austin leads the conference in team hitting percentage and opponents hitting percentage, ranks sixth in assists, is fourth in kills and kills per set, and first in blocks and opponent blocks. Their service game is a bit below league average, ranking ninth with just 1.26 aces a set, and their kills allowed and digs allowed to opponents both ranks at or near the bottom of the league.

Danae Daron (first, .378) and Ann Hollas (third, .302) are some of the best hitters in the country, and Taya Mitchell (first, 83 total blocks) is a force in the middle. Madelynn Miller has the second most digs per set in the SLC with an average of 4.89 a set.

Lamar vs. Abilene Christian University - October 5 - 1 p.m. - McDonald Gym

ACU was just 2-8 in "pre-season" play this year, but has found a bit of a groove since beginning SLC competition. The Wildcats are 2-0 against conference opponents with a 3-0 win over UIW and a 3-1 win over A&M-Corpus Christi, both at home.

Angela Mooney is in her third year as the head coach of the Wildcats, and has a 30-42 overall record and a 19-15 SLC mark in that time.

Before entering SLC play the Wildcats ranked near the bottom in the SLC in almost every category - 12th in hitting percentage and kills, 13th in opposing hitting and kills, 12th in service aces, 11th in digs - but has since jumped to the top of the conference in those same categories. Against only SLC opponents the Wildcats are hitting .251, tied with SFA for the best mark in the SLC, and they're averaging 11.86 assists a set, the fourth-highest average. Their 13.00 kills a set are best among SLC teams, and their blocks and aces are also near the top. ACU is vulnerable to aggressive play though with a dead-last 14.43 kills allowed per set.

Up Next - On the Road Again

After hosting SFA and ACU, Lamar continues its purple theme with a trip to Natchitoches, La., to face Northwestern State (9-7, 1-1 SLC) on Oct. 8. The Cards will then travel to Sam Houston State (6-8, 2-0 SLC) on Oct. 12 before finally coming home again to host Central Arkansas (6-9, 0-2 SLC) on Oct. 17 and Nicholls (7-7, 1-2 SLC) on Oct. 19.