SAN ANGELO - The Angelo State volleyball team is back home for its final four matches of the regular season this weekend as it continues its push for postseason play. The Rambelles host Cameron on Friday evening before closing their weekend on Saturday with Oklahoma Christian. Friday's match against the Aggies is also Military Appreciation Day.
LAST TIME OUT
The Belles closed out their road schedule last weekend, finishing with a 10-1 road record in the regular season after sweeping St. Edward's and returning to defeat St. Mary's in five sets.
KILLIN' IT
The Belles lead the LSC in points, kills, and assists as they possess one of the most potent attacks in Division II. Their 14.30 kills per set are tenth in the country and second in the region, while their 13.54 assists per set are seventh in the country and second in the region.
Adeline Ortman is seventh nationally in assists, while
Evelyn Torres and
Madi Parrish are second and third in the LSC in points per set, respectively.
ORTMAN NAMED LSC SETTER OF THE WEEK
Adeline Ortman earned her third LSC Setter of the Week award on Monday for her performances against St. Edward's and St. Mary's. She had 35 assists and a pair of aces against the Hilltoppers before recording 56 assists, 18 digs, three blocks, and two aces against the Rattlers.
THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT
The Belles' freshmen attackers -
Demi Carter,
Sydney Thornton,
Julia Hopkins,
Amelia Creacy, and
Taryn Barnes - have supplemented the Belles' offense this season, hitting .271 as a group and averaging 2.50 kills per set. Carter and Thorton have earned three of the LSC's nine "Freshman of the Week" honors.
HOME COOKING
Under head coach
Chuck Waddington, the Belles have a 193-34 record inside the Junell Center - Stephens Arena, good enough for a .850 winning percentage. The Belles' last four matches this season will occur on their home court.
BELLES SET ATTENDANCE RECORD
The Belles' match on Friday, September 6th, against New Mexico Highlands featured 3,315 fans in the stands, which set the Lone Star Conference record for single-match attendance. The match was the third-most attended Division II volleyball match in history.
BELLES IN THE POLLS
•The Belles are 13th in the AVCA/Taraflex Division II Top 25, totaling 624 points in the poll.
•The Belles have clinched a spot in the 2024 LSC Tournament. Under Waddington, the Belles have qualified for the tournament every season.
•The Belles were picked third in the LSC Preseason Poll behind West Texas A&M and DBU, receiving two first-place votes.
•They are one of three LSC teams in the poll, joining sixth-ranked West Texas A&M and 22nd-ranked DBU.
•The Belles are on their eighth straight week in the top 25. The Belles are amongst the nation's top 25 for the first time since September 2022; they had featured in the receiving votes section every week since the start of the 2023 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.
SCOUTING CAMERON
AVCA RANK: N/A
2024 RECORD: 1-23, 1-11 LSC
Live Stats | Watch Live on FloSports
Cameron is 1-23 on the season and 1-11 in LSC play. Their lone win came on October 9th, a four-set home win over Eastern New Mexico. They are 0-9 on the road, with all nine losses being sweeps.
The Aggies offense hits .105 as a team and averages 12.05 points per set. Their offense is led by Hailey Baker's 2.32 kills per set and Carsen Glaser's .163 attack percentage. Kayla Eggiamn is the biggest threat from the service line, averaging 0.26 aces per set.
Opponents hit .259 against the Aggies this season. They average 14.73 digs per set and 1.15 blocks per set. Libero Shelby Rusch leads the team with 3.34 digs, while Haley Beggs leads the defensive effort at the net with 0.54 blocks per set.
The Belles are 34-11 all-time against Cameron and 23-0 under head coach
Chuck Waddington. They have also won the last ten matchups in San Angelo, including a four-set win last season.
SCOUTING OKLAHOMA CHRISTIAN
AVCA RANK: N/A
2024 RECORD: 18-8, 7-5 LSC
Live Stats | Watch Live on FloSports
Oklahoma Christian is 18-8 on the season and 7-5 in LSC play. The Eagles have won their past four and nine of their last ten matches. They are 4-5 on the road and have won their past three matches away from Edmond.
The Eagles hit .219 as a team and average 16.34 points per set. Three-time LSC Freshman of the Week Chloe Jones leads the offense. The outside hitter averages 3.26 kills per set and is hitting .260 on the season. She has recorded 15 double-doubles in 26 matches this season.
Junior Katie Guerin leads the team with a .280 attack percentage. The Eagles' 6-2 offense is led by Sophie Mae Smith and Lauren McClure, who combine to average 10.17 assists per set.
Opponents hit .206 against the Eagles, averaging 15.39 points per set. The Eagles' defense is strong at the net, as their 2.12 blocks per set rank fourth in the league. Camryn McGough is ninth in the LSC with 0.92 blocks per set. Libero Sara Freeman leads the team with 3.71 digs per set.
The Belles are 3-1 all-time against the Eagles and have won both meetings by sweeps in San Angelo, doing so in 2021 and 2023.
PERSONAL BESTS THIS SEASON
Thirteen Belles have recorded at least one personal best in 2024.
- Outside hitter Taryn Barnes recorded two kills against No. 23 Central Oklahoma on Sept. 6. She has recorded three digs twice.
- Middle Demi Carter recorded 15 kills against No. 20 DBU on Sept. 19. She had two digs against New Mexico Highlands. She recorded eight blocks versus LCU on Oct. 26.
- Right side Amelia Creacy recorded seven kills against Fort Lewis, hitting .250, and a pair of digs against the Skyhawks. Against No. 3 WT, she had three blocks.
- Defensive specialist Allie Duitsman recorded three digs against Sul Ross on Oct. 18. She had a kill and three digs against the Lobos. She notched her first career ace to clinch the match against DBU on Sept. 19.
- Libero Caleigh Enax set a new career best with 38 digs in the Belles' five-set win over TWU on Sept. 28.
- Outside hitter Julia Hopkins had ten kills in the Belles' comeback win over Texas Woman's on Sept. 28. She also had three digs and a block against the Pioneers.
- Setter Alli Kirkpatrick recorded three kills and four blocks against Sul Ross State on Oct. 18.
- Setter Adeline Ortman tied her career high with 58 assists twice this season and set a personal best with three blocks versus LCU on Oct. 26.
- Outside hitter Madi Parrish set a new personal best with 23 kills in the Belles' win over No. 3 WT on Sept. 20; she notched four aces in the Belles' sweep of Western Colorado on Sept. 10.
- Defensive specialist Krizia Perez notched ten digs against Texas Woman's on Sept. 28. She had a pair of aces at St. Edward's on November 1st.
- Middle Hannah Spencer tallied 12 kills in the Belles' win over Texas Woman's on Sept. 28, her second-ever match with double-digit kills.
- Middle Sydney Thornton had 14 kills in the Belles' win over No. 15 Colorado Mesa on Sept. 14. She recorded seven blocks versus LCU on Oct. 26.
- Outside hitter Evelyn Torres recorded 25 digs in the Belles' five-set loss to No. 23 Central Oklahoma on Sept. 6. She set a new career high with 25 kills in the Belles' win over Texas Woman's on Sept. 28. She has tied her personal best of four blocks twice this season.
RETURNING STATS
ASU returns four starters and ten letter winners from last year's team while adding ten newcomers, including three Division II transfers.
Angelo State returns 46.9 percent (746 of 1589) of its kills, 67 percent (134 of 200) of its service aces, 70.7 percent (1337 of 1892) of its digs, and 50.8 percent of its blocks (99 of 195) from last season's team.
BELLES ADD TEN
Angelo State brought in ten newcomers in 2024, with seven freshmen and three Division II transfers joining the ten returners from last year's team.
Adeline Ortman
Graduate Student * 5-7 * Setter
Rhome, Texas * UT Tyler
Two-time All-LSC selection who ranked fourth in the LSC in assists last season for UT Tyler
Raelee Allen
Freshman * 5-9 * Outside Hitter
San Antonio, Texas * Reagan HS
6A Offensive Player of the Year in 2018-19
Taryn Barnes
Freshman * 5-9 * Outside Hitter
Southlake, Texas * Carroll HS
Two-time All-District selection for the Dragons
Sydney Thornton
Freshman * 5-10 * Middle Blocker
Prosper, Texas * Prosper HS
Recorded 594 kills and 289 blocks in her prep career
Julia Hopkins
Freshman * 6-0 * Outside Hitter
Austin, Texas * Westwood HS
District MVP for the Warriors
Amelia Creacy
Freshman * 6-1 * Right Side
Cypress, Texas * Bridegland HS
Two-time Offensive Player of the Year at Bridgeland HS
Demi Carter
Freshman * 6-2 * Middle Blocker
Bridge City, Texas * Bridge City HS
Recorded 1,353 career kills, 258 blocks, 522 digs, and 221 aces; District 19-4A MVP in 2022
Allie Duitsman
Freshman * 5-6 * Defensive Specialist
Prosper, Texas * Prosper HS
2023 First Team All-District selection
Ella Unterweger
Junior * 5-9 * Outside Hitter
Oconomowoc, Wis. * St. Cloud State
Member of the 2022 NSIC Tournament Championship team
Marta Roicka
Graduate Student * 6-0 * Setter
Warsaw, Poland * Gannon
Helped Golden Knights to two PSAC championships and an appearance in the Elite Eight
RECORD WATCH
With her fifth dig against Central Oklahoma on September 6th, senior libero
Caleigh Enax became the 17th player in program history and the 12th in the rally-scoring era to eclipse the 1,000-dig mark. She has 1,400 career digs, which ranks 7th all-time and 6th in the rally-scoring era.
Additionally, teammate
Adeline Ortman recorded her 2,000th career assist in the Belles' win over West Texas A&M on September 19th. She has 2,496 career assists, second-most among active players in the LSC.
Evelyn Torres recorded her 1,000th career kill in the Belles sweep of Texas A&M-Kingsville on October 12th, with the milestone kill finishing off the second set for the Belles.