SAN ANGELO – A six-game home stand begins this weekend for the No. 14-ranked Angelo State soccer team which hosts Oklahoma Christian at 5 p.m. on Friday and St. Mary's at 1 p.m. on Sunday at the ASU Soccer Field.

The Rambelles (4-0-0, 0-0-0 LSC) are outscoring opponents 16-3 this season and are off to their best start in program history through the first four games of the season. ASU, which had never been ranked in the program's 20-year history, is now the No. 14 team in the nation with the release of the NSCAA/Continental Tire NCAA Division II National Poll on Tuesday. The team has opened the season with lopsided wins over Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference opponents Adams State (W, 4-2), New Mexico Highlands (W, 4-0), Fort Lewis (W, 4-0) and Colorado Mesa (W, 4-1). Now the Rambelles move over to Heartland Conference competition to play the Eagles (0-5-1, 0-0-0 HC) who are coming off a 0-6 midweek loss to Midwestern State and the Rattlers (1-3-0, 0-0-0 HC).

A season already full of program firsts could see another record matched as a pair of wins this weekend would equal the all-time consecutive win streak of six which was established in the 2009 season.
 
Quotes: Travis McCorkle, Angelo State head coach

On opening the weekend with a game against Oklahoma Christian on Friday:
"I think Oklahoma Christian will come out fired up and ready to bounce back after a tough loss against Midwestern. They'll be doing anything they can to get a better result."
 
On playing against St. Mary's on Sunday:
"They played a really good game against Colorado School of Mines which is the top team in the region and typically have a strong team. They have been in every game they've played this season and we'll have to be ready for them on Sunday."
 
On playing at the ASU Soccer Field the next six games:
"I'm really hoping that we'll have a great crowd and an exciting atmosphere. I want to challenge our students and community to come out and support some history for Angelo State soccer. We're ranked for the first time and are off to the best start in program history. I think they'll enjoy watching our team play and we need them to keep us going. It would be great for them to be the 12th player out there for us during our home games."
 
On the variety of goal-scorers through the first four games of the season:
"We have a lot of different scorers because our team is doing a great job of creating opportunities. You can't undervalue hard work and that's what our entire team is doing right now. We are putting pressure on teams on defense and in the midfield to get possession and then we are doing a great job of finishing."
 
Rambelle Roster Report

Haley Mendel and Shantel Wittke are leading the Rambelles through the first four games, with Mendel topping the team with six goals and Wittke throwing two shutouts in goal behind a talented defensive unit. While Mendel has scored six goals, including a hat trick against Colorado Mesa last Sunday, the Rambelles have also had 10 other players score a goal this season. The goal scorer list includes Kathleen Keoughan, Ashley Exford, Cynthia Andrews, Brianne Brown, Sierra Anderson, Tiffany Dang, Caitlyn Conaway, Elizabeth Rodriguez, Loni Byers and Callie Smith. Jenny Kotowych leads the team with three assists, while Keoughan and Brown have two assists each. In goal, Wittke has made 18 saves and has a 0.78 goals against average.

Mendel earned the Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week honor on Tuesday after her three-goal performance against the Mavericks. A sophomore from Bastrop, Mendel has taken only 10 shots and has scored on six of them. She has also added an assist for the Rambelles a year after she did not score a goal and took only seven shots throughout the season. Mendel started the season with two goals against Adams State in the season opener, scored again with ASU's first goal against New Mexico Highlands and then went off for three goals last Saturday against Mesa. Only four games into the season, she is already making a threat to the all-time single-season records at ASU. Heather Selvitelle (1997), Dorothy May (2001) and Ashley Tatum (2007) are tied for the current record with the former Rambelles scoring 14 goals in a season. Michelle DiMeola (2002) and Sheri Champlin (2004) scored 11 goals in a season and Brandie DeBacker's 10 goals in the 2010 are the most in the past seven seasons.

Kotowych, a sophomore from Humble, now has five assists in her career after having two assists last season as a freshman and Keoughan now has four goals in her two seasons at ASU.  Exford's goal came on an assist from Keoughan against Adams State and Andrews scored her goal on an assist from Mendel to complete the four-goal effort against Adams. Conaway, a senior captain who had only one career goal coming into her final year at ASU, scored the second goal of the game against Highlands with an assist from Kotowych and Smith and Byers each delivered their career's first goal to complete the 4-0 trouncing of the Cowgirls.

Anderson, who led the Rambelles with seven goals last season, scored the 10th goal of her career of an assist from Brown to get the scoring started against Fort Lewis and Keoughan, Rodriguez and Brown followed to give ASU another 4-0 win. Dang recorded her career's first goal against Mesa, scoring the third goal of the game with just 17 seconds remaining in the first half to give ASU a 3-0 lead after the first 45 minutes of play.

The Rambelles are outscoring their opponents 10-1 in the first half this season and have a 54-36 shot advantage. ASU is outshooting the opposition 32-16 in the first half and are converting on 30 percent of its shot attempts.
 
OKLAHOMA CHRISTIAN EAGLES
Friday, Sept. 19 @ 5 p.m. // ASU Soccer Field

The Rambelles will start a six-game home stand on Friday with a game against Oklahoma Christian at the ASU Soccer Field. The Rambelles are 2-0-0 all-time against OC after securing a 3-1 win last season and a 1-0 win on Oct. 17, 1998.

The Eagles have dropped games this season to Oklahoma City (L, 0-4), Southern Nazarene (L, 0-3), Central Oklahoma (L, 0-5), Northwestern Oklahoma (L, 1-2) and Midwestern State (L, 0-6). Their tie came in a 2-2 decision against Ouachita Baptist in Oklahoma City.

In last season's game, Selena Alvarez and Sierra Anderson each had a goal, while Caitlyn Conaway recorded two assists against the Eagles. OC finished its 2013 season with a 4-12-2 overall record and went 2-6-1 in Heartland Conference play. Randall Robinson has led the OC program since the 2009 season as its head coach.
 
ST. MARY'S RATTLERS
Sunday, Sept. 21 @ 1 p.m.  //  ASU Soccer Field

The St. Mary's Rattlers will travel to San Angelo for the first time since the 2007 season on Sunday for a non-conference contest at the ASU Soccer Field. The Rambelles took a 2-0 win behind goals from Anderson and Alvarez in a game in San Antonio.

St. Mary's is 1-3 on the season with losses to Colorado State-Pueblo, Texas A&M-Commerce and No. 12-ranked Colorado School of Mines. The Rattlers earned a 5-0 win over Ouachita Baptist in their second game of the season and will not play another game before playing the Rambelles on Sunday. St. Mary's is coming off a 0-1 loss to Mines and are led by Rachel Gurinsky and Katie Kaspentis who have three goals each. Alyssa Tarmona has made 24 saves in goal and the team is outshooting its opponents 59-54 on the season.

ASU trails the all-time series 6-9-1 against the Rattlers. St. Mary's is coming off an 8-9-1 overall record and a 5-4-0 Heartland Conference mark last season. The team went 3-4-1 away from its home field and lost 0-4 to Dallas Baptist in the Heartland Conference Tournament to end its season. Corwyn Ritch is entering his 14th season as the head coach at St. Mary's.