The Angelo State University volleyball team, ranked No. 21 in the country in the preseason AVCA Division II Top 25, begins its back-to-back Lone Star Championship defense this weekend when it hosts the 16th annual Kathleen Brasfield Invitational presented by Oliver, Rainey and Wojtek. The Belles will play four matches this weekend, capping their weekend with a match up against CSU Pueblo on Saturday night. 

16TH KATHLEEN BRASFIELD INVITATIONAL
This year marks the 16th edition of the Kathleen Brasfield Invitational inside the Junell Center-Stephens Arena. The Belles have gone 53-6 in the previous 15 editions of the tournament, boasting a .898 winning percentage. UT Permian Basin is taking part in their sixth KBI, and its fourth in a row; the Falcons have gone 9-11 in their previous KBI appearances. The field is rounded out by CSU-Pueblo, East Central, Fort Lewis and MSU-Moorhead, . 

BELLES NAMED LSC PRESEASON FAVES
The Belles were listed on top of the Lone Star Conference Preseason Poll, receiving 951 total votes and 41 of 54 first-place votes. They lead West Texas A&M, Lubbock Christian, UT Tyler, St. Mary's, and Texas Woman's in the conference's preseason poll; Oklahoma Christian, Texas A&M-Kingsville, DBU, and Midwestern State round out the poll's top ten. This is the Belles' second straight season being picked atop the LSC Preseason Poll. 

PARRISH NAMED LSC PRESEASON OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Senior outside hitter Madi Parrish was named the LSC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, as announced in the conference's preseason polls and awards on August 20th. Parrish, an AVCA First Team All-American in 2025, is coming off a season in which she recorded 435 kills. Parrish is the first Belle to be named the conference's preseason offensive player of the year in back-to-back seasons. 

BELLES IN THE RANKINGS
The Belles enter the 2025 season ranked second in the AVCA Division II Top 25 poll. The Belles finished the 2024 season ranked 24th. The Belles have been ranked in 14-straight polls, dating back to September 17th, 2024. Four of the Belles' 28 matches this season will take place against teams ranked in the preseason top-25, with the Belles potentially adding two more ranked opponents as a part of the Colorado Premier Challenge on Sept. 4 & 5. 

RETURNING STATS
The Belles return 66.1 percent of their kills from last season (1,069 of 1,617 kills), 89.8 percent of their blocks (204 of 227 blocks), and 65.9 percent of their digs (1,299 of 1,971 digs). The Belles return 12 letterwinners from last season's squad, including All-American Madi Parrish and former All-LSC selections Sydney Thornton and Julia Hopkins. 

BELLES' 51ST SEASON
The 2026 season will be the 51st season of competition for the Belles volleyball program. In the program's first 50 seasons, they have gone 1,118-638-3, good enough for a .634 winning percentage. The Belles have a 406-189 record in LSC play, a .676 winning percentage. The Belles have won 12 LSC tournament titles and qualified for 17 NCAA Tournaments in that time, winning two regional championships. 

HOME COURT DOMINANCE
Under head coach Chuck Waddington, the Belles are 216-34 inside the Junell Center-Stephens Arena, boasting an impressive .864 winning percentage. The Belles are a combined 41-2 on their home court over the past three seasons, with both losses coming against ranked opponents who would go on to win their region later that season: No. 5 West Texas A&M in 2023 (South Central) and No. 23 Central Oklahoma in 2024 (Central). 

ATTENDANCE
At the 2024 KBI, the Belles set a new program and LSC attendance record when 3,315 fans packed the Junell Center-Stephens Arena to watch the Belles' season-opening sweep of New Mexico Highlands. The Belles are consistently one of the biggest draws in Division II. In Chuck Waddington's time leading the Belles Volleyball program, the Belles have drawn 40 crowds of over a thousand fans, going 35-5 in matches with over a thousand fans inside the Junell Center - Stephens Arena. During the 2024 South Central Regional, 4,237 fans watched the Belles win their three matches to claim the South Central Regional Championship and clinch their spot in the Elite Eight. The Belles bested their previous attendance record from the 2023 season, where 2,936 fans filled the seats of the Junell Center - Stephens Arena to watch the Belles sweep Southwest at the Kathleen Brasfield Invitational.