SAN ANGELO – The Angelo State soccer team will play its final two regular-season home games of the season this weekend when it hosts Eastern New Mexico at 7 p.m. on Friday and West Texas A&M at 1 p.m. on Sunday in a pair of pivotal Lone Star Conference contests at the ASU Soccer Complex.

The Rambelles (10-3-1, 3-3-1 LSC) have dropped their last three games and are currently tied with Texas Woman's for third place in the conference standings behind ENMU (7-5-0, 4-2-0 LSC) and Texas A&M-Commerce (9-5-0, 4-3-0 LSC) who have 12 points each. ASU and TWU each have 10 points in the conference standings, while Midwestern State is fifth with eight points and West Texas A&M sixth with six points with two weekends of conference play remaining. The Rambelles have only three LSC games remaining on their schedule with their games against ENMU and WT this weekend and then a road game next Friday at Midwestern State. ASU finishes off the regular season with a non-conference game against Southwestern Oklahoma on Sunday, Oct. 2 in Weatherford, Oklahoma.

ASU comes into the weekend regional ranked fourth in the NSCAA DII South Central poll, but dropped out of the national rankings for the first time in four weeks after its losses last weekend. The Rambelles have outscored their opponents 35-9 this season and have a 111-64 shot-on-goal advantage through 14 games. ASU is 7-0-1 on its home field where it has outscored its opponents 25-2 this season.
 
BELLE ROSTER REPORT
This weekend will be the final regular-season home games for Brianne Brown, Caitlyn Conaway and Brittany Martinez who are the three seniors on this year's team. Conaway and Martinez are four-year players at ASU who helped lead the program to its first NCAA Division II South Central Championship appearance as freshmen and to their first LSC regular-season championship last year as juniors.

"I couldn't be more proud of these three girls for what they've been able to accomplish while being a student-athlete here at Angelo State," ASU head coach Travis McCorkle said. "They each did a great job of representing Angelo State throughout their time here and I know they're all going to go on and do great things in their lives. They'll be missed as players and people next year."

Brown joined the Rambelles three years ago after starting her career at Northwestern Oklahoma State. She redshirted her first season before joining the team on the field last season. Conaway is a team captain who has been named to the LSC second-team the past two seasons as a defender, while Martinez moved from midfielder to defender last season and has provided the team athleticism and ball handling from her in defense. Brown has scored two goals and has two assists this season to go along with one goal and three assists last year as a junior. Conaway and Martinez have one goal each this season with Martinez providing two assists.

McCorkle on the three ASU seniors:
"Caitlyn is a great person first and foremost. She came in as a freshman and played right away for our team. She is involved throughout campus and we are extremely proud of her. She is a great role model for what a student-athlete can bring to their university.

"Brittany lightens the mood but is also a player who trains and plays hard every day. She's been very versatile for us playing in midfield and defense. She's a great young woman who has done great academically and I couldn't be more proud of what she's been able to do while a part of our program."

"Bri has great instincts as a forward and has improved a lot since she got here. She's a great person who will always help to get things done off the field."

Shantel Wittke tops the conference with seven shutouts and is two shutouts away from matching the program's all-time record. Wittke, a junior from Arizona, has made 49 saves and has an 8-3-1 record coming into this weekend's road tests. She has a .845 saves percentage and a 0.74 goals against average in 1,099 minutes of play. In two starts, sophomore Natalie Nielsen has recorded two shutouts in goal and has made six saves. Wittke was named the LSC Defender of the Week two weeks ago after her shutouts against A&M-Commerce and TWU. She also has shutouts against New Mexico Highlands, Fort Lewis, Colorado Mesa, St. Mary' and Midwestern State.

Sierra Anderson and Haley Mendel lead the Rambelles with seven goals through the first 14 games of the season. Mendel and Tiffany Dang are tied for the team lead with four assists, while Mendel tops the team with 18 points. Anderson has scored four goals in the past five games, including two last Friday in the team's 2-0 win at West Texas A&M. Mendel and Anderson are currently tied for third in the conference in goals this season with Mendel also third in total points with 18.

Anderson leads ASU in conference scoring with her two goals against WT coming after she scored the game-winner in double overtime against A&M-Commerce. She currently has 16 goals in her career after she emerged as an LSC threat last season with seven goals as a sophomore. She was named to the LSC first-team and to the all-region team last season and was the LSC Offensive Player of the Week two weeks ago after her game-winning header against A&M-Commerce.

Mendel scored the first two goals of the season for Angelo State with a pair of goals against Adams State in the season-opener and also has the only hat trick of the season with three goals against Colorado Mesa. Mendel also scored goals against New Mexico Highlands and Oklahoma Christian. Her assists have come on goals by Anderson, Elizabeth Rodriguez and two from Cynthia Andrews.

Dang has recorded her four assists in the past nine games, including connecting with Dakota Briseno for the game winner against TWU two weeks ago. She also has assists on three of Anderson's goals.

Loni Byers has added four goals in her freshman season an also has three assists. Byers scored her first goal against New Mexico Highlands and has added two goals against Oklahoma Christian and another against UTPB. Jenny Kotowych has three goals and three assists for the Rambelles with goals against OC, St. Mary's and UTPB and assists off two goals by Mendel and another by Caitlyn Conaway. Rodriguez, Andrews and Brianne Brown have two goals each this season with Brown adding two assists. A senior from LaVernia, Brown scored her goals against Fort Lewis and St. Mary's and has assists on goals by Mendel and Anderson.

ASU, which has seen 15 players score this season, has one goal from Selena Alvarez, Ashley Exford, Briseno, Conaway, Dang, Kathleen Keoughan and Brittany Martinez. Defensively, the team continues to receive strong play from Lauren Perry, Callie Smith, Briseno, Conaway, Martinez and a cast of midfielders who multi-task with their offensive and defensive responsibilities.
 
ENMU Zia Report
ASU's first loss of the season came two weeks ago at the hands of the Zias who earned a 2-0 win over the Rambelles in Portales, New Mexico on Oct. 12. Alyssa Prince scored both of ENMU's goals against ASU and it was only the second time the Rambelles had been held scoreless until they were blanked last weekend at TWU and Commerce. Prince leads the Zias this season with five goals, while Victoria Perez has four goals and Maurisa Jones has three. In goal, the Zias utilize a two-goalkeeper system with Fabienne Wilson recording 32 saves in 643 minutes of play and Alyxandra Ortiz providing 19 saves in 441 minutes of action. Wilson was named the LSC Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year, but it was Ortiz who earned the shutout against the Rambelles two weeks ago. Despite leading the LSC at the moment, ENMU has been outscored 19-18 this season coming into Friday's game against ASU but it is on a two-game winning streak after knocking off ASU and then pulling out a 1-0 overtime win over West Texas A&M last weekend in its only game of the week.

Toys for Tots Donation Drive
The Angelo State soccer program will be supporting Toys for Tots on Friday when the Rambelles host Eastern New Mexico at 7 p.m. at the ASU Soccer Complex. A donated new and unwrapped toy at the ticket gate will get fans into the game for only $2 and ASU students are also encouraged to make toy donations despite already receiving free admission with their OneCard.

RamFam members will be out at the game with barrels to collect toys which will then be donated to Toys for Tots – San Angelo. The program is designed to help less fortunate children of the Concho Valley experience the joy of Christmas through receiving donated gifts.

"I've always been a big supporter of the Toys for Tots program and think it's a great thing to help young kids feel special," ASU head coach Travis McCorkle said. "Getting a new toy is something that might seem small to some people, but it can really make a difference in the life of the children who will receive these toys. I really encourage everyone to come out on Friday and bring toys with them to support this cause."

About the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program

MISSION:
The mission of the U. S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program is to collect new, unwrapped toys during October, November and December each year, and distribute those toys as Christmas gifts to less fortunate children in the community in which the campaign is conducted.
GOAL:
The primary goal of Toys for Tots is to deliver, through a new toy at Christmas, a message of hope to less fortunate youngsters that will assist them in becoming responsible, productive, patriotic citizens.
OBJECTIVES:
The objectives of Toys for Tots are to help less fortunate children throughout the United States experience the joy of Christmas; to play an active role in the development of one of our nation's most valuable resources – our children; to unite all members of local communities in a common cause for three months each year during the annual toy collection and distribution campaign; and to contribute to better communities in the future.