SAN ANGELO, Texas – The No. 3 and top-seeded Angelo State University volleyball team will kick off postseason play by hosting the Lone Star Conference Championship Tournament at the Junell Center-Stephens Arena beginning on Wednesday, Nov. 11. The Belles will take on the winner of the No. 8 seed Western New Mexico and No. 9 seed West Texas A&M on Thursday, Nov. 12.

LAST TIME OUT
Last weekend, the Belles closed out the 2026 regular season with sweeps against Texas A&M-Kingsville and Texas A&M International to clinch the Lone Star Conference Regular Season Title. ASU has now won 19 matches in a row and has not lost a set in 31 straight sets dating back to Oct. 3.

TICKET INFORMATION
Two ticket options are available for purchase online. They will be available in person at the gate:
Adult Single-Day Ticket: $15
Adult Tournament Pass: $40

Additional ticket options will be available for purchase in person at the Junell Center-Stephens Arena:
Student Single-Day Ticket (Ages 16 and Younger): $10
Student Tournament Pass (Ages 16 & Younger): $25

Angelo State will also honor up-to-date, current student IDs from all participating universities for free admission.

2026 LONE STAR CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS
The Angelo State Belles notched the program's 14^th Lone Star Conference Regular Season Championship after a program-best 27-1 regular-season record and a perfect 17-0 mark in conference play. The undefeated conference campaign marked the first time ASU had accomplished the feat since 1984.

SCOUTING THE FIELD
Angelo State is welcoming eight teams to the Junell Center-Stephens Arena to compete for the Lone Star Conference Championship Tournament: DBU, UT Tyler, St. Edward's, Midwestern State, Texas A&M-Kingsville, UT Dallas, Western New Mexico and Western New Mexico.

The Belles are 27-4 across a total of 31 sets played against the field with the set losses coming against West Texas A&M on Sept. 10, St. Edward's on Sept. 19, UT Dallas on Oct. 2 an UT Tyler on Oct. 3.

DBU is the only team receiving votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association entering the weekend. Furthermore, the Patriots (No. 3), UT Tyler (No. 6) and St. Edward's (No. 8) are all projected to make the South Central Regional entering the weekend, according to the NCAA Power Index.

NCAA POWER INDEX UPDATE
Through matches on Nov. 9, ASU finds itself No. 5 overall in the NCAA Power Index Rankings and No. 1 in the South Central Region. Entering the weekend, the Belles would host an eight-team field of Colorado School of Mines, DBU, Colorado Mesa, MSU Denver, UT Tyler, South Dakota Mines and St. Edward's.

AVCA COACHES' POLL, NOVEMBER 9TH
The American Volleyball Coaches Association announced its 11th weekly poll on Monday, Nov. 9, with Angelo State rising to its new highest rank of the season at No. 3. The Belles have appeared in 26 consecutive AVCA polls dating back to Sept. 17, 2024.

ASU HEAD COACH: CHUCK WADDINGTON
Angelo State Head Coach, Chuck Waddington, notched his fifth Lone Star Conference Coach of the Year award and first since 2021 after guiding the Belles to a program-best 27-1 regular-season record and a perfect 17-0 mark in conference play. The undefeated conference campaign marked the first time ASU had accomplished the feat since 1984.

Waddington has accumulated a record of 463-149 across his 19 seasons at the helm and boasts a record of 231-34 inside the Junell Center-Stephens Arena, good for an .871 winning percentage.

PARRISH DOING PARRISH THINGS…AGAIN!
Senior outside hitter Madi Parrish was named Lone Star Conference Player of the Year for the second consecutive year and First Team All-Conference for the third consecutive year after totaling 345.5 points (3.60 per set) during the regular season. The Saginaw, Texas native, recorded 288 kills (3.00 per set) while hitting .243 and added 43 service aces, the second-most in the conference, along with 299 digs (3.11 per set). Parrish becomes just the second player in program history to earn the award in back-to-back years, joining Kailyn Gilbreath, who received the honor in 2020 and 2021.

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 TO ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS
Julia Hopkins becomes the fourth Belle in program history to earn LSC Offensive Player of the Year honors. She led the Blue and Gold with 302 kills (3.15 per set) while recording a career-best .277 hitting percentage. Her 317.0 points also allowed her to earn First Team All-Conference honors for the first time in her career.

The junior from Austin was named Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week for the second time on Tuesday, Nov. 3 after averaging 5.17 kills per set while hitting .419 to lead the Belles to a 2-0 weekend and cap an undefeated month of October. She totaled 31 kills across sweeps of Midwestern State and Lubbock Christian, recording 14 kills against the Mustangs before adding 17 against the Lady Chaps.

Hopkins earned the accolade for the first time this season on Tuesday, Oct. 5, after 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 NOT SO KID
Sydney Thornton earned her first career First Team All-Conference selection after totaling 261.5 points on 195 kills while hitting .339. Thornton also contributed 73 blocks and 19 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.

THE ASHCRAFT WAY TO ALL-LSC
Gabi Ashcraft notched her first career All-Conference selection with a Second Team nod after recording 511 assists as she remains on pace to surpass her assist total from last season. The junior is averaging 5.87 assists per set, compared to the 5.38 assists-per-set mark she posted in 2025.

On Tuesday, Nov. 10, Ashcraft was named Lone Star Conference Setter of the Week averaged 6.50 assists per set to help lead the Blue and Gold to a .310 hitting percentage and a pair of road sweeps over Texas A&M-Kingsville and Texas A&M International. She also recorded 21 digs and one service ace during the two-match stretch.
 
The junior's effort helped the Belles secure the outright LSC regular-season championship with a perfect 17-0 conference record, marking the program's first undefeated conference season since 1984. She recorded a double-double against Texas A&M-Kingsville with 19 assists and 12 digs and has tallied double-digit assists in 12 consecutive matches.

HAVE A SEASON, ALLI K!
Alli Kirkpatrick became the fourth Belle to reach 100 kills in 2026 on her way to a Second Team All-Conference nod. The senior right side has recorded 210 while hitting for a .285 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.

DUITS IS LOOSE
Allie Duitsman received Second Team All-Conference recognition after serving as the Belles' primary libero, recording 382 digs (3.98 per set). The Prosper, Texas native also recorded 127 assists and 33 service aces.

THE HONROABLE BARN ROOF
Hannah Barnhill earned LSC Honorable Mention honors after recording 97 kills and 63 blocks during the regular season. The San Antonio native recorded 12 blocks three weeks ago 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 honors on Tuesday, Oct. 27. During the Belles's ten straight sweeps, the San Antonio native has recorded 32 blocks.

THE PROWESS OF PENA
Olivia Pena has made her mark in the Belles' 6-2 system alongside Ashcraft as she earned was named to the LSC All-Freshman Team while also receiving Honorable Mention recognition. The Helotes, Texas, native totaled 435 assists (4.73 per set) and 148 digs.

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 130, while Leah Klueber became the sixth member of the 100-kill club for the season against Western New Mexico, as she now has 113 on the year.

HOME COURT DOMINANCE
Under head coach Chuck Waddington, Angelo State has compiled a 231-34 record inside the Junell Center-Stephens Arena, good for an .871 winning percentage. The Belles are 57-2 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.

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 25 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.

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.