Volleyball | 9/29/2014 2:25:00 PM

SAN ANGELO – The Angelo State volleyball team returns to action with a midweek Lone Star Conference match against Texas A&M-Commerce at 7 p.m. on Tuesday at the Junell Center in the first of three matches this week.

The Belles (10-2, 5-1 LSC) are currently second in the conference standings and have won nine of their last 10 matches after splitting last weekend with a sweep of Eastern New Mexico before falling in four sets to West Texas A&M on the road. The Lions (3-11, 1-4 LSC) are coming off two LSC losses last week against Texas Woman's and Texas A&M-Kingsville in matches which went three sets. ASU is 5-1 at the Junell Center this season and is 2-0 at home in LSC matches with wins over Texas Woman's and Texas A&M-Kingsville on its home court.

The Belles defense currently leads the LSC by limiting opponents to a .130 attacking percentage and also lead the conference with 14.00 kills, 19.84 digs and 13.36 assists per set.

ASU plays two matches this weekend in Stephenville after Tuesday's match against the Lions with matches against Tarleton State at 7 p.m. on Friday before facing Newman at noon on Saturday in a non-conference match at Wisdom Gym. The Belles remain outside of the national rankings for the third straight week after starting the season at No. 19. ASU is receiving 20 votes in the poll along with WT which is receiving 77 votes. There are currently no LSC teams in the top-25 but the NCAA DII South Central region is represented by No. 13 Colorado School of Mines, No. 20 Colorado Mesa and No. 22 Metro State.

Quotes  ||  Chuck Waddington, Angelo State head coach
On the team's nine-match winning streak ending and what the team needs to do to bounce back:
"It was a nice run for us and now it's important to start a new one. We have three matches this week and they're all important. We can't feel sorry for ourselves. We have to get back on the horse and get back at it. I'm excited to play in front of our home crowd on Tuesday. We just have to take care of the ball and do what we do."

On playing against A&M-Commerce on Tuesday at the Junell Center:
"They graduated a bunch, but their staff does a great job of recruiting. I'm sure they'll have some great players for us to compete against. They play hard. Every point for them is a championship point for them. They defend like crazy and will make us earn our points."

On Military Appreciation night and what it means to him to recognize active and retired military members:
"My grandfather was in the military. He was a pilot in World War II and I appreciate his sacrifice for our country. Almost everyone knows someone who has served, is serving or has sacrificed their life in the military to provide us with our freedom. It's a big deal and I hope a lot of active and retired military come out to support us and we'll show them some love because they definitely deserve it."

  Belle Roster Report
Mallory Blauser is coming off a strong attacking weekend where she provided 13 kills in the three-set win over Eastern New Mexico and 12 kills in the four-set loss at WT. Blauser, who is a sophomore in her first season with ASU after transferring from the University of Cincinnati, is averaging 3.83 kills per set this season and leads the team with 161 kills through the first 12 matches of the season. She is hitting at a .197 percentage and has nine double-digit kill performances this season. Abbie Lynn, who is also in her first season with ASU, has made an immediate impact as a freshman. An Amarillo native, Lynn has 120 kills through the first 12 matches of her ASU career and is coming off a seven-kill performance against the Lady Buffs. Lynn has seven double-digit kill performances, while Arielle Bond has 81 kills this season and is hitting at a .189 percentage. Bond has 554 kills in her first three seasons (72 matches played). Blauser is currently third in the LSC in kills per set, while Lynn is seventh.

Shelby Wilt continues to lead the Belles from a defensive standpoint with 223 digs this season. A senior captain, Wilt has 2,058 digs in her record-setting career at Angelo State and is averaging 5.07 digs per set this season. Also a team captain, Katie MacLeay is second on the team with 132 digs this season (3.00 per set). MacLeay enters this week with 914 digs in her career at ASU after recording 15 digs at ENMU and then 14 against the Lady Buffs. The defense is also being bolstered by freshman Kelly Hasbrouck who has 117 digs (2.85 per set) and junior Haley Bianco who has 73 digs (2.15 per set). Wilt is third in the LSC with her digs per set behind Casey Fletcher (MSU) who has a 5.80 digs per set average and Morgan Wilson (TWU) who is at 5.50. MacLeay is currently 15th in digs per set and Hasbrouck is 18th in the conference.

At the block, sophomore Zoey Hanrahan leads the Belles with 32 blocks and freshman Daeleigh Castile has 29 blocks. Hanrahan enters this week with 74 kills and a .294 attacking percentage, while Castile has 59 kills and a .285 percentage. Cerbi Ritchey has added 37 kills and Brianna Sotello has 31 kills in her freshman season.

Alexa Johnson enters this week with exactly 500 assists for the Belles in her first season at ASU. A sophomore transfer from Lamar University, Johnson is averaging 11.36 assists per set and has also provided 92 digs (2.09 per set) and has 34 kills. Johnson earned a LSC Setter of the Week honor after the second week of the season and currently leads the LSC with her assists per set average. She established a career-high with 57 assists in a five-set match against Arkansas Fort Smith and has a three-set high with 38 in wins over ENMU and Cameron.
 
Texas A&M-Commerce Lions (3-11, 1-4 LSC)
NEXT MEETING: Saturday, Oct. 11 @ 2 p.m. / Commerce's Field House
Texas A&M-Commerce established itself as a dangerous Lone Star Conference volleyball team in the 2013 season, accumulating a 23-9 overall record and going 9-7 in conference play. The Lions snapped a seven-match losing streak to the Belles with a four-set win at The Field House before the Belles secured a five-set victory a week later in San Angelo.  

Amy Devault leads the A&M-Commerce attack with 220 kills (4.00 per set) and is second in the LSC in that category, while Veronika Baric has 104 kills for the Lions. Ashley Mireles leads the defense with 249 digs (4.53 per set) and the Lion block is led by Delanee Clark's 28 blocks.

ASU possesses a 38-20 all-time advantage over the Lions. The Lions knocked off Tarleton State in the quarterfinals of the LSC Championships in Canyon and nearly pulled an upset against West Texas A&M in the semifinals. In the tournament, A&M-Commerce forced the Lady Buffs to five sets before WT claimed a 15-13 fifth-set win to advance to the finals. Craig Case is in his fifth season at A&M-Commerce as the program's head coach and has led the Lions to back-to-back 20-win seasons.