WEATHER UPDATE: Sunday's Angelo State soccer game has been moved to 1 p.m. because of weather. The Rambelles take on Eastern New Mexico at the ASU Soccer Field.




SAN ANGELO – Back home for the first time in almost a month, the Angelo State soccer team hosts West Texas A&M and Eastern New Mexico in Lone Star Conference games this weekend at the ASU Soccer Field.

The Rambelles (6-3-1, 2-1-0 LSC) have won six of their last eight games and have five shutout-wins in the first 10 games of the season. ASU will host WT (3-4-4, 1-1-1 LSC) at 4 p.m. on Friday before a 2 p.m. game on Sunday against ENMU (4-4-2, 1-1-1 LSC).

Angelo State, which is currently tied atop the LSC standings with Midwestern State (2-1 LSC) with six points each, is coming off a 1-2 loss at Texas Woman's last Sunday which snapped a program-best five game winning streak. The Rambelles lead the conference by limiting opponents to only seven goals through 10 games. ASU, which is also the LSC leader with 7.60 shots on-goal per game, has outscored opponents 15-7 over the course of the first half of the season and are taking over five shots more per game.

The two games this weekend will wrap up the first half of LSC play in the six-team conference.
 

RAMBELLE PLAYER SUMMARIES

Dani Edwards continues to lead the Angelo State defense in goal and has four shutouts and 28 saves. She ranks first in the conference in saves and with a .488 goal against average. Edwards has started nine of the 10 games played this season and is coming off winning the LSC Goalkeeper of the Year award last season.

The Rambelle defense continues to be one of the stingiest in the conference and is being led by Caitlyn Conaway, Jordan Benfield, Brittany Martinez, Trisha Killen and Lauren Perry. Conaway, who was the LSC's Preseason Co-Defensive Player of the Year, also has two assists this season.

Selena Alvarez leads Angelo State with four goals this season after recording her latest with a header in the Rambelles' 1-0 LSC win over Texas A&M-Commerce last weekend. Alvarez, who is third in the LSC in goals scored, has now scored goals against Ouachita Baptist, St. Mary's, Oklahoma Christian and now the Lions. The sophomore midfielder now has five goals in her career after scoring one last year as a freshman. She has scored her four goals on only 13 shots this season.

Martinez scored her first goal of the season last Sunday in the 1-2 loss at Texas Woman's on a corner kick. Martinez, who also had the assist on Alvarez's goal in Commerce, now has two goals in her career at ASU. A midfielder turned defender, Martinez has been a versatile player for the Rambelles all season.

Sierra Anderson leads the ASU offense with 28 shots and has scored three goals this season. She ranks second in the LSC in shots taken and ninth in points per game. A sophomore from Wichita Falls, Anderson also has an assist this season and now has six goals in her two years at ASU. She has three game-winning goals this season with strikes against St. Mary's, Midwestern State and Oklahoma Christian.

Maggie Schaffer is second on the team with 24 shots and has one goal – coming against Colorado Mesa. The senior has 11 goals in her three seasons at ASU and also recorded an assist this season at Oklahoma Christian. Jenny Kotowych and Kathleen Keoughan have scored two goals each in their freshmen seasons at ASU. Kotowych scored both of her goals in the first half of ASU's win over Wayland Baptist, while Keoughan scored her first goal just three minutes into the season-opener at New Mexico Highlands and then her second against WBU to cap a 3-0 Angelo State win. Fellow freshman Kelli Regan has two assists along with Conaway. Brianne Brown has one goal (against Colorado Mesa) in her junior season, while Chloe Contreras has one assists in her first year at ASU.
 
COACH QUOTES

Head coach Travis McCorkle (56-42-15 record in 6th year at ASU, 96 overall career wins)

On playing against West Texas A&M on Friday:
"It's a change for them to move to a 4-4-3 and they had a tough game last Sunday. I'm expecting them to come out and want to atone for that game like we are. They are the defending conference champions and we know that it's a measuring stick for us where we need to get a good performance to win. Hopefully we are prepared for that."
 
On playing against Eastern New Mexico on Sunday:
"They had a big win last Sunday against West Texas A&M which builds their confidence. They should be feeling good about what they're doing."
 
On the mindset of the team entering the weekend:
"I think it was a strong dose of reality for us that if we don't put teams away then we can lose. We had an opportunity to take the game from Texas Woman's and we didn't do it. We need to develop that ability to continue putting teams away each game and get the results. I think we are close but it has to be a mentality that we have every day in practice, in film review and then carry it over into each game. Everything we do has to be with quality to get to where this team is a capable of getting."
 
Angelo State vs. West Texas A&M Lady Buffs (4 p.m. on Friday)

West Texas A&M (3-4-4, 1-1-1 LSC) enters the weekend following a 1-4 loss to Eastern New Mexico last weekend in its only game of the week. The Lady Buffs have split their previous four games with wins over Texas-Permian Basin and Texas Woman's which led into a scoreless tie against Texas A&M-Commerce and the loss to ENMU. WT and its opponents have each had 151 shots and saves this season.

Jessie Thomas leads WT this season with two goals on 20 shots, while Emily Krenek, Dominque Premac, Jasmine Shultz and Berklee Watson all have one goal this season. Yvette Bedoy has recorded 57 saves this season and leads the conference with six shutouts. She has a .838 saves percentage in 1,080 minutes of play this season. Premac leads WT with 26 shots and 15 shots on-goal.

West Texas A&M is coming off winning the Lone Star Conference regular season and tournament titles in 2012. The Lady Buffs, who topped Incarnate Word in double overtime in the conference tournament's championship game, went 13-7-1 overall and had a 10-4-0 conference record. WT lost 4-1 to Metro State in the opening round of the NCAA Division II South Central Championship to see its impressive season end. The Lady Buffs hold a 13-6-6 all-time advantage over the Rambelles, including taking both meetings last season. Chad Webb enters his fourth season as the team's head coach. WT loses two first-team all-LSC selections, including the LSC's Player of the Year in Leslie Briggs. Midfielder Emily Krenek returns after a freshman season where she earned second-team honors.
 
Angelo State vs. Eastern New Mexico Zias (2 p.m. on Sunday)

ENMU enters the weekend on a two-game winning streak following its 4-1 win over WT and a 2-1 non-conference victory over Lubbock Christian last week. The Zias have outscored their opponents 15-12 this season and have two shutouts. The points-advantage for ENMU comes despite the team being outshot 156-84 this season.

Maurisa Jones leads ENMU with four goals this season on only 12 shots, while Alyssa Prince has three goals and three assists. Carolyn Armijo leads the team with four assists with Brook Serrano adding two assists and a goal to the offensive attack. Renee Romero also has two assists this season.

Alyxandra Ortiz and Fabienne Wilson are both seeing time in goal for the Zias, with Ortiz playing the majority of the minutes. Ortiz has three shutouts this season, 28 saves and has allowed only five goals in 633 minutes. Wilson has 19 saves and has allowed seven goals in 349 minutes.  

ASU claimed both meetings against Eastern New Mexico last season by a combined score of 6-0 and own a 7-4-0 all-time advantage in the series. The Rambelles' 5-0 win over the Zias last season at home was their highest scoring output of the season, including goals from returners Brittany Martinez and Maggie Schaffer. ASU head coach Travis McCorkle was the head coach at ENMU from 2003-07. The Zias finished last season with a 5-13-0 overall record and a 4-10-0 conference mark. The team missed out on postseason play after losing its final six games of the season. Todd Padgett is entering his third season as the head coach at ENMU. Victoria Perez returns for her junior season after being selected to the LSC second-team as a midfielder last season.
 
UP NEXT: The Rambelles will stay at home next weekend to host Texas Woman's and Texas A&M-Commerce in rematches from last weekend.