SAN ANGELO - Having won their first five matches this season via five sweeps, the Angelo State volleyball team looks to carry its positive momentum forward this weekend when they compete at the Skyhawks Invitational hosted by Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colo. 

The Rambelles' 5-0 start is their best start to a season since the spring 2021 campaign when they started that season undefeated in the first 13 matches of the season. 

The Belles will also look for redemption from last season's escapade up to Colorado, where they went 0-5, with four of those losses coming to ranked opposition. 

Under head coach Chuck Waddington, the Belles are 31-27 all-time in the state of Colorado; however, they are currently riding a six-match losing streak dating back to the 2021 NCAA South Central Regional.

BELLES IN THE POLLS

•     The Belles are receiving 31 votes in the AVCA Preseason Top 25, the second-highest placed LSC team in the AVCA poll.
•     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 four LSC teams to appear in the poll, behind top-ranked West Texas A&M and ahead of DBU and 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 vs. CSU Pueblo
Friday, Sept. 8 - 10 a.m. CT
Whalen Gymnasium

The Belles are 5-2 all-time against the Thunderwolves, with the latter defeating the Belles last season at the KBI. Last season, the Thunderwolves qualified for the NCAA South Central Regional. This season, the Thunderwolves are 0-4 with losses to Tiffin, Texas A&M-Kingsville, Quincy and Ouachita Baptist. 

Game 2
RV Angelo State at Fort Lewis
Friday, Sept. 8 - 4 p.m. CT
Whalen Gymnasium

The Belles are 1-2 all-time against the Skyhawks, the hosts of this weekend's tournament, with the Skyhawks claiming their win in 1996 and 2003 while the Belles won in 2019. The Skyhawks are 1-3 this season with a win over St. Edward's and losses against DBU, UT Tyler and Southern Nazarene. 

Game 3
RV Angelo State vs. East Central 
Saturday, Sept. 9 - 12 p.m. CT
Whalen Gymnasium

The Belles are undefeated against the Tigers in six previous matchups, with the Belles claiming sweeps in 2021 and 2022. Last season's match at the KBI saw Hannah Kinnison lead all players with 13 kills while Caleigh Enax had three aces and Elsa Lamphere led all players with 15 digs and Laney Dale paced all setters with 24 assists. 

Game 4
RV Angelo State vs. Southwestern Oklahoma St.
Saturday, Sept. 9 - 6 p.m. CT
Whalen Gymnasium

This marks the first match between these two teams since 2012; all-time, the Belles are 5-1 against the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs are 3-1 this season with wins over Midwestern State, Eastern New Mexico and Western Colorado; their lone loss came against Central Oklahoma. 

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 four kills this season, exceeding her total from the 2022 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 14 times against Henderson State on September 1st, the most in her debut season; she also notched three service aces against Southwest on the same day.
•     Outside Elsa Lamphere hit .833 in the season opener versus Southwest, a new career-high for the senior. 
•     Outside hitter Madi Parrish nearly recorded a double-double in her collegiate debut with nine kills and ten digs versus Southwest. She hit .692 against the Mustangs, and recorded three blocks against UTPB on September 2nd. 
•     Defensive specialist Krizia Perez recorded two digs against Huston-Tillotson on Spetmeber 2nd. 
•     Middle Marina Sanchez tied her career high with two service aces against UT Permian Basin on September 2nd. She also tied a career-high in kills with eight against New Mexico Highlands on September 5th. 
•     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 are on the road next weekend to compete at the LSC Crossover hosted by Texas A&M-Kingsville.