SAN ANGELO, Texas - The No. 5 Angelo State Rambelle softball team travels to San Antonio, Texas to play two non-conference games against the St. Marys Rattlers and the Texas A&M-Kingsville Javelinas on Saturday, February 6.
 
Game Info:
Angelo State (0-0, 0-0 LSC) vs St. Mary's (0-0, 0-0 LSC)
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Angelo State (0-0, 0-0 LSC) vs Texas A&M-Kingsville (0-0, 0-0 LSC)
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Series Matchup:
The last time that the Rambelles and Rattlers played each other was on Saturday, March 7, where the Rambelles defeated St. Mary's 10-7 in the eighth inning. Since 2007, Angelo State leads the series 36-14. The last time that Angelo State and Texas A&M-Kingsville played each other was on April 13, 2019, where ASU defeated the Javelinas at home 8-5. ASU and Kingsville did not play each other last season due to the season being cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
Scouting St. Mary's:
The Rattlers finished the 2020 season with an 11-18 overall record and a 3-5 LSC record before the season was cancelled due to COVID-19. The Rattlers return one of their top players in second baseman, Jayme Johns. The junior from Elgin, Texas finished last season with 42 hits, 21 runs, one double, one triple, two home runs, and seven RBI, finishing the season with a .515 slugging percentage and one stolen base.
 
Scouting Texas A&M-Kingsville:
The Javelinas finished the 2020 season with a 17-9 overall record and a 2-2 conference record before the season was cancelled due to COVID-19. The Javelinas return one of their top players in catcher, Matisen Onofrei. The sophomore from Mesa, Arizona finished the 2020 season with 17 runs, 28 hits, five doubles, one triple, six home runs, and 21 RBI, ending with a .716 slugging percent and four stolen bases.
 
Preseason Praise:
The NFCA ranked the Rambelles No. 5 in their Division II Top 25 Preseason poll alongside four other Lone Star Conference teams, finishing behind the UT Tyler Patriots in fourth. Texas A&M-Commerce finished ninth in poll, while the Oklahoma Christian Eagles finished in 13^th place. Lubbock Christian rounded out the LSC teams, finishing in 19^th place.
 
The Rambelles were predicted to finish fourth in the Lone Star Conference preseason poll, finishing behind the Oklahoma Christian Eagles in first, the UT Tyler Patriots in second, and the Texas A&M-Commerce Lions in third. Senior Courtney Barnhill was nominated as the Co-Preseason Player of the Year, alongside Texas A&M Internationals Briana Arredondo.
 
Key Players:
The Rambelles return 11 starters to field, three of which ended the season with a batting avarage above .300, with Barnhill leading the Rambelles offensive front, registering 21 runs, 27 hits, three doubles, two triples, six home runs, and 21 RBI. Barnhill currently holds the all-time home run record for the Rambelles with 48 home runs. She led the team in batting average with a .375 and a .722 slugging percentage and stolen bases with 20. Paxton Scheurer followed behind Barnhill with a .319 batting average, scoring 11 runs, 22 hits, four doubles, four home runs, and 17 RBI. Hatty Shope finished the season with a batting average of .313, while registering eight runs, 15 hits, four doubles, one home run, and seven RBI. Shope finished second on the team in stolen bases with eight bases stolen.
 
Senior Victoria Vasquez finished the season with the lowest ERA with a .90, pitching in 23.1 innings, throwing 31 strikeouts, finishing the season with a 2-0 record. Genesis Armendariz finished second for the Rambelles on the team, throwing a 1.74 ERA and 35 strikeouts, finishing the season with a 9-2 record.