SAN ANGELO - The Angelo State volleyball team faces a tough road test this weekend in the form of Texas A&M-Kingsville and Texas A&M International, with both teams sitting in the top six in the LSC standings entering this weekend. 

LAST TIME OUT
The Belles went 2-0 this past weekend as they swept St. Edward's and St. Mary's. Friday's match against the Hilltoppers was the Rambelles' annual "Dig Pink" night, where they raised over $3,500 dollars for the Side-Out Foundation. Saturday's sweep over the Rattlers marked the first time since March 2nd and 3rd, 2021, that the Belles had swept the same opponent twice in a single season.

DALE MAKES HISTORY
After joining the 1,000-assist club a couple of weeks ago, senior setter Laney Dale moved herself up to seventh all-time on the ASU career assists list (rally-scoring era, since 2001); she now sits on 1,079 assists for the Blue and Gold and is 65 assists away from sixth-place Alexa Johnson (2014), who recorded 1,144 assists. 

DALE NAMED LSC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Laney Dale earned her second LSC Setter of the Week award on Tuesday for her performances against St. Edward's and St. Mary's. Dale averaged a double-double for the weekend, starting her weekend with 23 assists and 13 digs to go along with three service aces against the Hilltoppers. Against St. Mary's, she had 24 assists and 17 digs. She averaged 7.83 assists as the Belles' offense posted a .268 hitting percentage for the weekend. 

BELLES IN THE POLLS

•     The Belles are receiving 80 votes in the AVCA Top 25, the second-highest placed LSC team in the AVCA poll and just one position out of the top 25. 
•     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 two LSC teams to appear in the poll, joining fifth-ranked West Texas A&M. 
•     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 at Texas A&M-Kingsville
Friday, October 27th - 6 p.m.
Gil E. Steinke Physical Education Center

The Javelinas are 14-6 on the season and 6-2 in conference play; they are riding a four-match winning streak, beating DBU, UT Tyler, Lubbock Christian and Eastern New Mexico. The Javelinas are 10-1 on their home court this season, and the Belles are 60-14 all-time against the Javelinas. 

The Javelinas average 13.03 kills per set and hit .235 as a team; the offense is led by Jackie Alanis (3.01 kills per set; .297 hitting percentage) and Ayanna Jackson (2.97 kills per set; .365 hitting percentage). The main setters for the Javelinas are Elisa Carli (5.84 assists per set) and Rylan Pollard (4.88 assists per set).

Defensively, the Javelinas average 15.36 digs and 2.22 blocks per set; they hold opponents to a .180 hitting percentage. The Javelinas have three players with 200 or more digs on the season, led by freshman Isabel Neu (3.33 digs per set). Jackson has 1.08 blocks per set while Jeri Ficklen has earned LSC Defensive Player of the week honors twice this season. 

LAST TIME VS. TAMUK
The Belles fell to the Javelinas in five sets back on September 14th. Hannah Kinnison led all players with 21 kills while Elsa Lamphere added in 13. Caleigh Enax had 24 digs, and Laney Dale 32 assists and 18 digs. 

Game 2
RV Angelo State at Texas A&M International
Saturday, October 28th - 2 p.m. 
TAMIU Kinesiology and Convocation Building

The Dustdevils are 14-7 on the season and 5-3 in conference play; their loss to Lubbock Christian to close last weekend snapped a four-match winning streak. The Dustdevils are undefeated in five matches on their home floor this season. The Belles are 5-2 against the Dustdevils; this marks the first time the Belles have played in Laredo. 

The Dustdevils average 12.30 kills per set and hit .190 as a team. Ariana Guerra averages 3.61 kills per set while Hannah Thompson leads the team with a .304 attack percentage. Setter Emma Lade leads the LSC with 10.83 assists per set. 

The Dustdevils holds opponents to a .158 hitting percentage courtesy of averaging 16.60 digs per set and 1.77 blocks per set. Guilia Hortelan and Lixai Perez have over 300 digs apiece this season. Middle Jasmin Garcia leads the team with 0.81 blocks per set. 

LAST TIME VS. TAMIU
The Belles fell to the Dustdevils in five sets last season inside the Junell Center - Stephens Arena. Elsa Lamphere led the Belles with 16 kills and hit .317 while recorded 14 digs, and Hannah Kinnison had a 17-dig, 11-kill double-double. Caleigh Enax led the team with 18 digs and Laney Dale had 25 assists to go with 15 digs. 

PERSONAL BESTS THIS SEASON

•     Twelve Belles have recorded at least one personal best this season.
•     Setter Kayla Baer had three service aces against UAFS on Sept. 16, including two in a row that gave the Belles the lead in the fifth set.
•     Setter Laney Dale recorded a pair of kills against New Mexcio Highlands on Sept. 5; she has seven kills this season, exceeding her total from the 2022 season. She also set a new career high with three service aces against East Central on Sept. 9 and has nine double-doubles this season. 
•     Libero Caleigh Enax recorded 36 digs against Cameron on Oct. 7; her career-best is tied for the fourth-most digs in a single match in program history.
•     Outside hitter Hannah Kinnison set a career-high attacking percentage of .750 against University of the Southwest on Sept. 1. She recorded a career-high 23 kills against Cameron on Oct. 7.
•     Setter Alli Kirkpatrick assisted 26 times against East Central on Sept. 9, the most in her debut season; she also recorded eight digs against TAMUK on Sept. 14.
•     Outside Elsa Lamphere hit .833 in the season opener versus Southwest, a new career-high for the senior. 
•     Outside hitter Madi Parrish buried 15 kills against Texas Woman's on Sept. 27. She recorded 13 digs against TWU on Sept. 27 for her second-career double-double. 
•     Defensive specialist Krizia Perez recorded six digs against Cameron on Oct. 7. She also recorded her first ace against MSU on Sept. 30. 
•     Middle Marina Sanchez had 13 kills vs. CSU Pueblo on Sept. 8, the first time she's had ten or more kills in a match in her career. She also had eight digs against the Thunderwolves, a career-high.  
•     Middle Hannah Spencer recorded three blocks against Henderson State on September 1st; she also recorded ten kills in her LSC debut versus WNMU; she hit .625 against UTPB on Sept. 23. She also recorded a pair of aces against St. Mary's on Sept. 15. 
•     Outside hitter Evelyn Torres set a new career high with 18 kills against UAFS on Sept. 16; she tied that mark again on Sept. 27 against Texas Woman's. 
•     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 back home on November 3-4 for their final home matches of the regular season, where they will take on UAFS and Oklahoma Christian.