SAN ANGELO, Texas – The No. 5 Angelo State University volleyball team will close out the home schedule for the 2026 regular season with Lone Star Conference action at the Junell Center/Stephens Arena. The Belles will first host Midwestern State on Friday, Oct. 30, before turning around to face Lubbock Christian on Saturday, Oct. 31.

WEEKEND ACTIVITIES
The Belles will host several activities throughout the weekend, beginning Friday with the Athletic Department's annual Trunk or Treat event at 5:30 p.m. at the Junell Center, prior to the match. Children in eighth grade and younger who attend in costume will receive free admission. The Belles will also honor their five seniors with a Senior Day ceremony before the match.

On Saturday, Angelo State will host its annual Dig Pink match, raising funds for the Side-Out Foundation. Fans can purchase Dig Pink shirts for $15 at either match or online. Additionally, fans will have the opportunity to participate in a silent auction featuring the team's pink jerseys, with proceeds benefiting the Side-Out Foundation.

LAST TIME OUT
Last weekend, the Belles hit the road with a pair of matches against Eastern New Mexico and West Texas A&M. The Blue and Gold returned home with two sweeps, taking advantage of 36 total errors to notch the win in the Land of Enchantment, followed by a .327 team attack percentage to earn the first road sweep in The Box since 1986.

SCOUTING THE MUSTANGS
Midwestern State goes into the weekend with a 14-11 overall record and 9-5 in LSC play. The Mustangs come off a 1-2 week, picking up a three-set home sweep of Eastern New Mexico before dropping two matches in the DFW, including a sweep by DBU and a four-set loss to Texas Woman's.

Offensively, the Mustangs rank sixth in the Lone Star Conference with a .215 team attack percentage. MSU has three players who have achieved over 200 kills, paced by Isabella Dickens with 286 kills on a .326 attack percentage while Jaiden Wright follows with 228 kills on a team-best .329.

Running a 5-1, MSU is led by Macy Scheer with 868, which averages to 9.14 per set.

Defensively, opponents are hitting .230 against Midwestern State, which ranks 16th in the LSC. The Mustangs boast two players who have registered over 200 digs, led by Jenna Reddings, who has 390. At the net, Wright leads the team with 64 total blocks.

SCOUTING THE LADY CHAPS
Lubbock Christian goes into the weekend with an 11-13 overall record and 7-7 in LSC play. The Lady Chaps are coming off a three-match week, falling to West Texas A&M in four sets at home before splitting decisions on their road trip to the DFW, picking up a win in a five-set thriller against Texas Woman's before suffering a sweep against DBU.

Saturday will be the second time this season the Belles and Lady Chaps will face off as they did for the first time during the Lone Star Conference Challenge back on Sept. 12, where the Blue and Gold won the match in four sets.

Offensively, the Lady Chaps rank 13th in the Lone Star Conference with a .174 team attack percentage. Camryn Blair paces the team with 215 kills on a .138 attack percentage.

Running a 5-1, LCU is led by Camdyn Sears with 605 assists while also registering 103 kills.

Defensively, opponents are hitting .207 against Lubbock Christian, which ranks 13th in the LSC. The Lady Chaps boast two players who have registered over 200 digs, led by Sears, who has notched 235. At the net, LCU is paced by Kayson Reeves with 86 blocks.

AVCA COACHES' POLL, OCTOBER 19TH
The American Volleyball Coaches Association announced its ninth weekly poll on Monday, Oct. 26, with the Angelo State Belles maintaining their highest rank of the season at No. 5. The Belles have appeared in 24 consecutive AVCA polls dating back to Sept. 17, 2024.

PARRISH DOING PARRISH THINGS
Preseason Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Year Madi Parrish leads the Belles in points accounted for (285) while being second in kills (247). The senior from Saginaw, Texas, has also recorded a team-high 33 service aces and 22 total blocks while ranking second on the team with 268 digs.

On Saturday, Sept. 26, Parrish became the 13th player in program history to record 1,000 career digs. Parrish also became just the third player in program history to reach 1,000 career digs while surpassing 1,300 career kills, joining Jennifer Glass (1993-96) and Brianna Sotello (2014-17).

HOP-PING HIGHER
Julia Hopkins sits atop the team with 254 kills and is second with 285.0 points entering the weekend.

The junior from Austin was named Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week on Tuesday, Oct. 5 when she averaged 4.38 kills per set while hitting .329 to help lead the Belles to road victories over UT Dallas and UT Tyler. She opened the weekend with a career-high 19 kills on a .368 attack percentage in ASU's 3-1 win over UT Dallas before following with 16 kills on .289 hitting in another 3-1 victory over UT Tyler.

SYD THE KID
Sydney Thornton ranks third on the team with 230.5 points accounted for behind 174 kills. The junior is also second on the team with 62 blocks and has added 16 service aces.

Thornton was named the Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 8 after helping lead the Belles to a 4-1 record at the Colorado Premier Challenge against a challenging field that included then-No. 5 Ferris State, No. 7 MSU Denver and Bentley, which was receiving votes in the AVCA Division II Coaches Poll. The Prosper, Texas, native totaled 43 kills while hitting .373 and added 16 blocks during the five-match stretch. She also recorded 16 digs, three service aces and one assist.

BARNHILL BLOCK
Hannah Barnhill leads the Belles with 64 blocks after recording 12 blocks last week in sweeps over Western New Mexico, Eastern New Mexico and West Texas A&M that earned her Lone Star Conference Defensive Player of the Week as announced by the league on Tuesday afternoon. During the Belles's six straight sweeps, the San Antonio native has recorded 22 blocks.

HAVE A DAY, ALLI K!
Alli Kirkpatrick became the fourth Belle to reach 100 kills in 2026. The senior right side has recorded 179 kills while hitting for a .277 attack percentage, already surpassing the 69 kills she recorded across her first three seasons in the Blue and Gold. The Bonham, Texas, native's best performance thus far came at the Kathleen Brasfield Invitational, where she recorded 20 kills in Angelo State's four-set victory over MSU-Moorhead.

THE ASHCRAFT WAY
Gabi Ashcraft has recorded 428 assists and is currently on pace to surpass her assist total from last season. The junior is averaging 5.71 assists per set, compared to the 5.38 assists-per-set mark she posted in 2025. On Saturday, the Rockwall native achieved her 1,000 career assist as a Belle, becoming the tenth player in program history to achieve that mark. She enters the weekend with 1,009 career assists and is just 49 away from catching ninth place in the category.

THE PROWESS OF PENA
Olivia Pena has made her mark in the Belles' 6-2 system alongside Ashcraft. The Helotes, Texas, native is second on the team lead with 389 assists.

Pena earned Lone Star Conference Freshman of the Week honors on Sept. 15 after helping guide the Belles to a perfect 2-0 record during LSC Challenge Weekend against West Texas A&M and Lubbock Christian. The freshman from Helotes, Texas, totaled 44 assists while averaging 5.5 assists per set. She also added 10 digs, one kill and one service ace during the weekend.

THE NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
Along with Pena, two additional newcomers have made immediate impacts for the team this season. Vivian Parker became the fifth Belle to reach 100 kills as she now has 115 while Leah Klueber became the sixth member of the 100-kill club for the season against Western New Mexico, as she now has 105 on the year.

SCRIVNER IS HER
Madison Scrivner has demonstrated the Belles' depth and ability to step up when called upon. During the Lone Star Conference Challenge, the junior recorded back-to-back double-doubles, totaling 43 assists and 25 digs across matches against West Texas A&M and Lubbock Christian.

SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
BELLES NAMED LSC PRESEASON FAVES
Angelo State was selected to repeat as Lone Star Conference champions in the league's preseason poll, receiving 951 points and 41 of the 54 available first-place votes. The Belles were picked ahead of West Texas A&M, Lubbock Christian, UT Tyler and St. Mary's, with Oklahoma Christian, Texas A&M-Kingsville, DBU and Midwestern State rounding out the top 10. It marks the second consecutive season Angelo State has been selected as the LSC preseason favorite.

PARRISH NAMED LSC PRESEASON OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Senior outside hitter Madi Parrish was selected as the LSC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year for the second consecutive season.
Parrish, an AVCA First Team All-American in 2025, returns following a standout junior campaign in which she led the conference with 435 kills. She became the first Belle to earn consecutive LSC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year honors.

BELLES IN THE (PRESEASON) RANKINGS
Angelo State began the 2026 season ranked No. 21 in the AVCA Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll. The Belles have appeared in 24 consecutive AVCA polls dating back to Sept. 17, 2024. Four of Angelo State's 28 regular-season matches are scheduled against teams ranked in the preseason top 25, with the Belles potentially facing two additional ranked opponents during the Colorado Premier Challenge on Sept. 4-5.

RETURNING STATS
The Belles return a significant portion of their production from last season, including 66.1 percent of their kills, 89.8 percent of their blocks and 65.9 percent of their digs. Angelo State returns 12 letterwinners from the 2025 squad, including All-American Madi Parrish and former All-LSC selections Sydney Thornton and Julia Hopkins.

BELLES' 51ST SEASON
The 2026 campaign marks the 51st season of Angelo State volleyball. Through its first 50 seasons, the program has compiled a 1,118-638-3 record for a .634 winning percentage, including a 406-189 mark in LSC play. The Belles have captured 12 LSC Tournament championships and advanced to 17 NCAA Tournaments, including two regional championships.

HOME COURT DOMINANCE
Under head coach Chuck Waddington, Angelo State has compiled a 229-34 record inside the Junell Center-Stephens Arena, good for an .869 winning percentage. The Belles are 55-2 at home over the past four seasons, with both losses coming against ranked opponents that went on to win their respective regions later that season. Angelo State fell to No. 5 West Texas A&M in 2023 and No. 23 Central Oklahoma in 2024.

ATTENDANCE
Angelo State volleyball continues to rank among Division II's top draws. At the 2024 Kathleen Brasfield Invitational, 3,315 fans packed the Junell Center-Stephens Arena to watch the Belles sweep New Mexico Highlands, setting program and LSC attendance records. During Waddington's tenure, Angelo State has welcomed more than 1,000 fans to 40 matches, posting a 35-5 record in those contests. During the 2024 South Central Regional, 4,237 fans watched the Belles win three matches inside the Junell Center-Stephens Arena to claim the regional championship and advance to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight. The 2024 regional attendance surpassed the previous program record of 2,936 fans, set during the 2023 Kathleen Brasfield Invitational when the Belles swept Southwest.