UCO/OC Festival
Friday, September 2 • Edmond, Okla. • Hamilton Field House
St. Mary's (0-4) at Central Oklahoma (4-0) • 11 a.m.
Southeastern Oklahoma State (1-3) vs. St. Mary's • 3:30 p.m.
Saturday, September 3 • Edmond, Okla.
Hamilton Field House • St. Mary's vs. Emporia State (1-3) • 10 a.m.
Eagles Nest • Southern Nazarene (2-2) vs. St. Mary's • 4:30 p.m.
Back To Where It Began: St. Mary's travels to Central Oklahoma for the UCO/OC Festival. A season ago, the Rattlers opened up the year at OC, winning all four matches to kick off Head Coach Laura Ulrich's tenure. This year the team faces UCO, Southeastern Oklahoma State and Emporia State at UCO and Southern Nazarene in the Eagles' Nest at OC.
What A Way To Start: Freshman libero Alyssa Koehl was named to the Britkare Lady Buff Classic All-Tournament Team after leading the club in digs with 2.64 over the four matches. Koehl reached double figures twice.
Series Histories: The Rattlers are 6-6 against Central Oklahoma and haven't played since 2011, a five-set setback. The team is 1-1 against Southeastern Oklahoma State and the last meeting was a sweep for the Gold & Blue in 2012. The Rattlers won the lone meeting against Emporia State back in 2004 in five sets and they are 1-1 against Southern Nazarene with a five-set loss the last time the clubs faced off in 2014.
A Whole Lot of Combos: The Rattlers played all 17 on the active roster in the first weekend. Only sophomore setter Cali Nims and freshman libero Alyssa Koehl played in all 14 sets. Junior OH Lindsey Ogle, freshman MB Dallasstar Johnson and freshman S Abbey Stiffler played in 13, while eight others played in at least half the sets.Â
Madame President: Junior OH Lindsey Ogle isn't just a star on the court for the Rattlers, but she also serves as the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee President, while junior S Aislan Lennon is also on the board of the SAAC. Ogle leads the Rattlers with 2.31 kills per set
Block Party: The Rattlers either tied or won the blocking battle in three of their first four matches and are averaging 2.25 blocks per set, well above the pace of last season of 1.86. Senior Sadie Hough and freshman Dallasstar Johnson each blocked 11 shots, while junior Lindsey Ogle was right behind them with 10. Freshman Laurene Robinson chipped in eight.
Fresh Faces: St. Mary's welcomes 11 new players to the roster for the 2022 season. The Rattlers have one graduate transfer, one junior college and one four-year college transfer and eight freshmen. They join the seven returners from the 2021 team.
Be On The Lookout: Sophomore setter Cali Nims was named one of the Preseason Players to Watch on the inaugural list released by the Lone Star Conference. A season ago, Nims was named to the All-Conference Freshman Team after she tallied six double-doubles in assists and digs during 2021. She averaged 5.51 assists and 2.14 digs per set.
