Lone Star Crossover Quad
Thursday, September 8 • Dallas • Burg Center
St. Mary's (3-5) at DBU (6-2) • 6 p.m.
Friday, September 9 • Dallas • Burg Center
St. Mary's vs UT Permian Basin (4-4) • 3 p.m.
Thursday, September 8 • Dallas • Burg Center
St. Mary's vs UAFS (5-3) • 3 p.m.
Facing League Foes: The 17 teams in the Lone Star Conference are all traveling to four sites this weekend to take place in a non-conference event before beginning league play next week. The event is to help the team's get regional opponents, which is key for postseason selection. The Rattlers will be in Dallas with DBU, UT Permian Basin and UAFS.
New Kids On The Block: Just two weeks into the season, the Rattlers have established themselves as one of the best blocking teams in the nation. St. Mary's currently ranks sixth amongst Division II teams (278) and second in the Lone Star Conference with 2.71 blocks per set. Against Southeastern Oklahoma State, the Rattlers recorded 15 total blocks, tying for the second most in StMU history in a three-set match and the 30 block assists is a new 3-set record, breaking the mark of 28. Freshman Dallasstar Johnson also established a new record for individual block assists in that match with 10, surpassing the previous total of eight. Johnson currently ranks 20th in the nation with 1.30 blocks per set and 28th in total blocks with 35.
Settling In: The Rattlers have won three-straight matches, dropping only one set in that stretch. The defense held all three opponents below a .110 hitting percentage, including allowing Emporia State to hit only .058 in four sets. During the UCO/OC Festival, the Rattlers forced .100 or below seven times, including holding two opponents to a negative hitting percentage in a set.
Series Histories: The Rattlers are 17-23 against DBU with a 5-13 mark in Dallas and are 12-12 against UT Permian Basin and 4-21 in the series with UAFS. StMU is 1-0 on a neutral court over UTPB and lost the lone neutral meeting with the Lions - in the semifinals of the 2018 Heartland Conference Tournament at Lubbock Christian.
Double Trouble: Sophomore setter Cali Nims recorded the first double-double of the season for the Rattlers with 15 assists and 10 digs in the win over Emporia State. Nims now has seven double-doubles in her career.
Aces High: Freshman setter Abbey Stiffler posted a career-best six service aces in the team's sweep over Southern Nazarene on Saturday, tying for the fifth-most in a three-set match in school history. She recorded six of the team's seven aces in the match, adding 13 assist and seven digs.
Finding Her Groove: Freshman OH Landri Withers has tallied double figures in kills in each of the last three matches and hit .360 at the UCO/OC Festival for the weekend. She added 12 blocks, six digs and two assists to go along with 39 kills.
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.
