SAN ANGELO – The Angelo State volleyball team dropped their first match of the season to close out their weekend at the Skyhawks Invitational last weekend, and the Rambelles look to return to winning ways when they compete at the LSC Crossover this weekend, hosted by Texas A&M-Kingsville.

The Belles will take on the Javelinas Thursday night before facing St. Mary's on Friday afternoon and UAFS on Saturday afternoon. 

The Belles' opponents this weekend have a combined 17-7 record on the season, and all four teams qualified for the LSC Tournament a year ago; last season, the Belles lost to all three of their opponents this weekend, suffering sweeps against the Rattlers and Lady Lions on the road and dropping the match in five sets to the Javelinas at home. 

The Belles have recorded more wins in three sets (five) then they did in the whole 2022 season (four); they are also three wins away from matching last season's win total of 11. 

BELLES IN THE POLLS

•     The Belles are receiving 52 votes in the AVCA Preseason Top 25, the second-highest placed LSC team in the AVCA poll and just two positions out of the top 25. 
•     The Belles ended the 2022 season as the eighth-ranked team in the LSC standings, qualifying for the LSC Tournament. The Belles have qualified for the tournament every season under Waddington. 
•     The Belles were picked fifth in the LSC Preseason Poll behind West Texas A&M, UT Tyler, DBU, and Texas A&M-Kingsville.
•     They are one of three LSC teams to appear in the poll, behind top-ranked West Texas A&M and ahead of UT Tyler. 
•     The Belles started the 2022 season ranked 13th in the country before dropping to 23rd the following week and falling out of the poll the next week, failing to rejoin at any point during the rest of the season. 
•     The Belles started the 2021 season ranked first in the country off the heels of the 2021 AVCA National Championship; they spent the entire 2021 season within the top 25 of the poll. 

Game 1
RV Angelo State at Texas A&M-Kingsville
Thursday, Sept. 14 - 6 p.m.
Gil. E Steinke Physical Education Center

The Belles are 60-13 all-time against the Javelinas and head coach Chuck Waddington is 17-4 versus Kingsville. The Belles have won the last three meetings in Kingsville, last losing in 2015. This is the first of two times the Belles will travel down to Kingsville to face the Javelinas, doing so again at the end of October for LSC play. 

Game 2
RV Angelo State vs. St. Mary's
Friday, Sept. 15 - 3 p.m.
Gil. E Steinke Physical Education Center

The Belles are 24-14 all-time against the Rattlers; Waddington owns a 7-1 record against St. Mary's. Last season, the Rattlers swept the Belles in San Antonio; this will mark the first time the Belles and Rattlers will face each other on a neutral court under Waddington. Later this season, the Rattlers will travel to San Angelo for LSC ation. 

Game 3
RV Angelo State vs. UAFS
Saturday, Sept. 15 - 12 p.m.
Gil. E Steinke Physical Education Center

The Belles are 4-3 against the Lady Lions, dating back to 2013. Last season, the Lady Lions swept the Belles in the Natural State; the Belles claimed the only neutral-court matchup between these two teams back in 2019, winning in five sets in Commerce in the LSC Tournament semifinals that season. The Lady Lions make the trip west to San Angelo on the first weekend of November for the two teams' conference match against each other. 

PERSONAL BESTS THIS SEASON

•     Nine Rambelles have recorded at least one personal best this season.
  • Setter Laney Dale recorded a pair of kills against New Mexcio Highlands on September 5th; she has five kills this season, exceeding her total from the 2022 season. She also set a new career high with three service aces against East Central on Sept. 9 and has two double-doubles this season. 
  •     Outside hitter Hannah Kinnison set a career-high attacking percentage of .750 against University of the Southwest on September 1.
  •     Setter Alli Kirkpatrick assisted 26 times against East Central on Sept. 9, the most in her debut season; she also notched three service aces against Southwest on Sept. 1.
  •     Outside Elsa Lamphere hit .833 in the season opener versus Southwest, a new career-high for the senior. 
  •     Outside hitter Madi Parrish buried 11 kills against East Central on Sept. 9. She hit .692 against Southwest, a career-high. 
  •     Defensive specialist Krizia Perez recorded two digs against Huston-Tillotson on Spetmeber 2nd. 
  •     Middle Marina Sanchez had 13 kills vs. CSU Pueblo on Sept. 8, the first time she's had ten or more kills in a match in her career. She also had eight digs against the Thunderwolves, a career-high.  
  •     Middle Hannah Spencer recorded three blocks against Henderson State on September 1st; she also recorded five kills twice, doing so against the Reddies and UT Permian Basin; she hit .833 against the Falcons. 
  •     Outside hitter Kamryn Williams recorded four kills each against Huston-Tillotson and Southwest; she hit .667 against the Mustangs.  

RETURNING STATS

• ASU returns four starters and 12 letter winners from last year's team while adding seven newcomers, including a pair of in-conference transfers.
• Angelo State returns 79.8 percent (1052 of 1319) of its kills, 94.7 percent (107 of 113) of its service aces, 88.3 percent (1572 of 1780) of its digs, and 34.2 percent of its blocks (81.5 of 238.5) from last season's team.

BELLES ADD SEVEN
Angelo State brought in seven newcomers in 2023, including a pair of transfers from within the LSC. 

    Alli Kirkpatrick
    Freshman * 5-11 * Setter
    Bonham, Texas * Bonham HS
    Recorded 1,939 kills and 1,375 digs at Bonham HS; two-time district hitter of the year
    
    Madi Parrish
    Freshman * 5-9 * Outside Hitter
    Saginaw, Texas * Boswell HS
    Recorded 981 kills and 1,049 digs at Boswell HS; two-time all-district selection.

    Krizia Perez
    Freshman * 5-6 * Defensive Specialist
    Laredo, Texas * United HS
    Led United HS to four district championships; first-team all-district selection

    Maya Smalls
    Grad. Student * 5-10 * Right Side
    San Antonio, Texas * St. Edward's
    2022 All-LSC First Team selection at St. Edward's; recorded 361 kills for the Hilltoppers in 2022

    Hannah Spencer
    Freshman * 6-1 * Middle Blocker
    San Antonio, Texas * Cornerstone Christian
    Tallied 385 kills and 210 blocks; two-time all-district selection

    Evelyn Torres
    Senior * 5-9 * Outside Hitter
    Fort Worth, Texas * UT Tyler
    All-LSC Second Team in 2022 for UT Tyler

    Kamryn Williams
    Freshman * 6-0 * Outside Hitter
    Wall, Texas * Wall HS
    All-time kill leader at Wall HS with 1,260; most kills in a season with 448; 2021 All-West Texas MVP

UP NEXT
The Belles open conference play on September 20th inside Stephens Arena/Junell Center when they host Western New Mexico.