NEW ORLEANS — Four Xavier University of Louisiana players combined for 32 kills and a .410 hitting percentage Thursday and helped the Gold Nuggets score a 25-13, 25-18, 25-8 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference volleyball victory against Tougaloo.
     The Gold Nuggets (23-6, 13-0), clinched a tie for the GCAC regular-season championship — their eighth in a row. They'll win the title outright with a victory against Tougaloo in the regular-season finale at 1 p.m. Sunday in Tougaloo, Miss. If Tougaloo wins, XULA and the Lady Bulldogs will share the championship.
     The GCAC Tournament will be Nov. 9-10 at SUNO. Winner of that event will earn the GCAC's automatic bid to the NAIA National Championship tournament, which will begin Nov. 17.
     Kayla Black had nine kills and hit .353 for XULA. Elena Duru had eight kills and hit .462, Vivica Price-Spraggins had eight kills and hit .389, and Jaida Dowd had seven kills and hit .462.
     The Gold Nuggets encountered drama only in the second set, where they rallied from 10-5 and 14-10 deficits. XULA opened the match with a 15-4 run and earned its fifth consecutive victory after scoring 11 of the final 12 points.
     "We controlled the ball better at the end of the second set," XULA head coach Pat Kendrick said. "and made fewer unforced errors, which gave us an opportunity to come back."
     Carolyne Edwards had five kills, eight digs and three blocks for the Lady Bulldogs (18-13, 12-1), who are 0-17 all-time against XULA.
     Other XULA contributors were Angele McClain with five kills and two blocks, Taylor Ducros with 13 digs, and Marine Angely with three kills and seven digs. Eva Le Guillou had 23 assists, and Tiffany Phillips had 14. Le Guillou and Beatrice Formilan served two aces apiece.
     XULA outhit Tougaloo .315 to minus-.116 and had advantages of 42-13 in kills, 6-3 in aces and 42-33 in digs.
     "We played fairly steady throughout the match," Kendrick said. "We're looking forward to playing them again on Sunday."