ATLANTA – Approaching the halfway mark in the season, Georgia State's volleyball team is taking a trip to Lafayette, La. to play UL Lafayette on Thursday night. The Panthers return to host South Alabama on Saturday at 6 p.m.

GSU (3-10, 1-3 Sun Belt) is coming off a one-match weekend in which conference leader UALR defeated the Panthers 3-0. GSU showed improvement despite the shutout and head coach Sally Polhamus said the team is taking notice of their progress.

“This team is driven because they see the steps they are taking. Their play is getting more aggressive and everything's starting to come together with their confidence and working in our system. They're learning how to win,” Polhamus said.

Thursday's match against ULL marks the halfway mark of the season. Juniors Deidra Bohannon and Eliza Zachary have been pacing the team on both offense and defense. Bohannon is fourth in the Sun Belt and first on the team in kills with 161. Zachary is fourth in the SBC and first on the team in hitting percentage at .358. The middle blocker also leads the team in blocks with 27.

ULL is 12-3 on the season with a 2-3 conference record. They are led on offense by Sara Mossakowski who is hitting .183 with 143 kills.

“They have a very diverse offense,” Polhamus said of the Ragin' Cajuns. “They have a handful of players averaging more than two kills per set. They also have an offensive setter who was just named freshman of the week by the conference in Andrea Hole so they're a good all-around team.”

After Thursday's match in Lafayette, the Panthers return home to host South Alabama (7-7, 2-2 SBC). GSU and USA met two weeks ago and the Jaguars walked away victorious, winning 3-0. Polhamus likes the quick turnaround and sees it as an opportunity to focus on executing a game plan better.

Follow the Georgia State volleyball team on Twitter via @GeorgiaStateVB as they battle the Ragin' Cajuns on Thursday and Jaguars on Saturday.