SAN ANGELO – The Angelo State soccer team will take on West Texas A&M at 2:30 p.m. on Friday in the semifinals of the Lone Star Conference Soccer Championships being played at the ASU Soccer Field.

The Rambelles (11-4-2) earned the right to host the tournament for the first time in program history after claiming a share of the LSC Championship with Midwestern State. Both teams finished the season with 7-2-1 records in conference play after the Mustangs took a 3-2 win over ASU last Friday. The LSC title is the first for ASU since the program was started in 1996. WT (5-8-5) is the tournament's defending champion and have won the title a record six times. The Lady Buffs are playing in their 17th tournament in program history.

ASU is 5-1-1 in its last seven games and is making its 11th appearance in the LSC tournament. The Rambelles have advanced to the postseason four straight seasons and are currently ranked No. 5 in the NCAA Division II South Central region. ASU won both regular-season games against WT by one goal, first with a 2-1 overtime win in San Angelo and then a 1-0 victory in Canyon two weeks ago when Kathleen Keoughan scored in the final minutes of regulation.

Midwestern State (13-4-1) and Texas A&M-Commerce (11-5-1) will open the tournament at 12 p.m. on Friday in the first of two semifinals. The Mustangs are on a season-long five-game winning streak, while the Lions split games last weekend with a 1-3 loss to WT followed by a 2-0 win over Eastern New Mexico. MSU is making its 18th tournament appearance and are three-time champions, while the Lions will be competing in their 15th tournament and have won it twice.

The semifinal winners will meet at 1 p.m. on Sunday for the LSC Championship. The tournament champion receives an automatic bid to the six-team NCAA DII South Central tournament.

Fan Information: In an effort to improve fan safety and assist with traffic flow, the entrance to the ASU Soccer Field has been moved permanently from Varsity Drive to the ASU Softball parking lot (Lot 31) located at the corner of Johnson Street and Victory Lane. This new entrance will be used during this weekend's Lone Star Conference Women's Soccer Tournament.
 
RAMBELLE PLAYER SUMMARY
Dani Edwards comes into the conference tournament with seven shutouts this season and 16 in her career. Edwards, who is the reigning LSC Goalkeeper of the Year and a two-time LSC Defensive Player of the Week this season, leads the conference with a 0.597 goals against average and with a .880 saves percentage. The senior goalkeeper has recorded 52 saves in her second full season in goal for ASU after having eight last Friday against MSU. Edwards allowed only seven goals in the 10 regular-season conference games and ranked first in the LSC in goals against average.

Edwards has been supported by the top defensive unit in the LSC this season which includes Caitlyn Conaway, Jordan Benfield, Lauren Perry, Brittany Martinez and Trisha Killen.

Sierra Anderson leads Angelo State with seven goals and fell one behind MSU's Ashley Cottrell for the most goals in the conference. Anderson did not score a goal last Friday, but has scored in seven of the last 12 contests. The sophomore, who is from Wichita Falls, had two assists last Friday in the 2-3 loss to MSU and has 10 goals in her career after scoring three last season as a freshman. Anderson scored five of her goals in conference play, including the overtime winner against WT in the first meeting between the two teams.

Selena Alvarez and Maggie Schaffer each scored late-game goals for the Rambelles last Friday against MSU. Schaffer struck first with the third goal of her senior season, while Alvarez scored her fifth goal of the year in what was the goal which gave ASU the right to host the tournament. Alvarez has scored her five goals on only 17 shots in her sophomore season. Schaffer, who has 13 career goals, is second on the team with 39 shots this season and also has an assist.

Jenny Kotowych is tied for second on the team with five goals (along with Alvarez) and had the assist on Keoughan's game-winning goal two weeks at West Texas A&M. Kotowych has scored all five of her goals in two games this season with a two-goal performance against Wayland Baptist in the first weekend of the season and then recording three goals two weeks ago in a 4-1 win over Texas Woman's. Keoughan finished the regular season with three goals, including the first goal of the season for the Rambelles against New Mexico Highlands.

Brianne Brown leads the Rambelles with three assists this season and finished ninth in the conference in that statistic. Brown, who is playing in her first season at ASU after redshirting last year following a transfer from Northwest Oklahoma State, scored a goal earlier this season against Colorado Mesa and had two assists in the win over TWU and another against ENMU at home. Kelli Regan, Conaway and Anderson are second on the team with two assists each with Conaway having two assists against Oklahoma Christian and Regan providing assists against New Mexico Highlands and Colorado Mesa.

Regan, Cynthia Andrews and Martinez account for the other goals with Squires, Haley Mendel and Chloe Contreras providing assists.
 
COACH QUOTES

Head coach Travis McCorkle (61-43-16 record in 6th season at ASU, 101 overall career wins)
On preparing for the Lone Star Conference Soccer Championship:
"We are going to focus on playing our style of soccer and not make too many adjustments. We are going to focus on WT. This tournament isn't about anything else for us besides the game we're playing on Friday."

On playing against West Texas A&M at 2:30 p.m. on Friday:
"They are a very organized team. Rhea Belgrave is an outstanding defender for them and Berklee Watson and Jessie Thomas have played really well for them. They present problems and are playing really well right now. We'll have our hands full and need to be up for the task."

On the mindset of playing in the postseason:
"At this point of the season, it's win or go home. We need to go at that with a calm sense of confidence and ready to compete. This team is very close to each other and they need to be there for each other like they've shown throughout the season."
 
West Texas A&M Lady Buffs
West Texas A&M enters the tournament having won its last two games with victories over A&M-Commerce and Texas Woman's to earn a postseason berth. WT, which is the defending conference champion, had a seven-game winless streak going at 0-5-2 before sweeping its final weekend of play on the road.

ASU swept the regular-season series against the Lady Buffs with a 1-0 win two weeks ago in Canyon and a 2-1 overtime win at the ASU Soccer Field in mid-October. WT were outscored 18-12 this season in its 18-game schedule. Jessie Thomas, junior midfielder from Anna, led the Lady Buffs this season with six goals on 29 shots. Thomas scored two game-winning goals for WT, while Berklee Watson had two goals and two assists in her senior season out of Amarillo High. Emily Krenek also had two goals and an assist with Haley Girard contributing two assists.

Yyette Bedoy tied Edwards with seven shutouts this season and was fifth in the conference with a .932 goals against average. The senior goalkeeper from Garland has 97 saves coming into the LSC tournament.  

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 a year ago, 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 13-7-6 all-time advantage over the Rambelles, including the Rambelles winning both games this season after the Lady Buffs took both meetings last season. Chad Webb is in his fourth season as the team's head coach.