With half of the season over, Missouri Southern Lion Volleyball Head Coach Chris Willis wants to see continuous improvement from his squad.

“At this point in the season, we are just trying to get better every day,” Willis said. “October is always a difficult time to maintain focus, as our athletes are beginning to feel the length and difficulty of the season wearing on them.

“They are also going through mid-terms like every other student, so it’s a time of digging deep and finding what we are made of.”

The Lions are set to play at 7 p.m. today against MIAA rival Central Missouri in Warrensburg. The Jennies beat MSSU, 3-1, last month at home.

If the Lions plan on getting back into the thick of things in the MIAA, a quick turnaround will be paramount. After completing their first tour through conference play, the Lions finished with a 1-9 mark. Now, the Lions, who have dropped seven of their past eight matches, are preparing for their second stretch against MIAA opponents.

“First, the players have to stay motivated to compete,” Willis said. “For a lot of athletes, it would be easy to pack it in for the season. I think we still have the competitive drive and will to win.

“Second, we’re adding a new twist to our line-up that will hopefully pay off. It’s nothing big, but should minimize some match up challenges we’ve had against some teams.”

With the exception of a few matches against ranked opponents, most of the scores have been close.

“We struggle with similar issues that every team has,” Willis said. “Getting everyone to play at a consistent high level at all times.”

Blocking at the net and defensive play overall has been an issue this season, but the Lions have begun to show improvement recently.

“It kept us in the match against (Pittsburg State), and we out blocked both Pitt and SBU,” Willis said. “Hopefully, we can build on this during the second half of conference play.”