This Week in Rattlers Volleyball
at Reddie-Tiger Invitational • Arkadelphia, Ark.
Friday, Sept. 6 • vs. McKendree • 10 a.m. • vs. Southeastern Oklahoma State • 3 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 7 • at Henderson State • 12 p.m. vs. Missouri S&T • 3:30 p.m.
Getting Things Started: The 49th season of St. Mary's Volleyball begins on Friday against McKendree in the opening match of the 2024 Reddie-Tiger Invitational, co-hosted by Henderson State and Ouachita Baptist. The Rattlers will also face Southeastern Oklahoma State, Henderson State and Missouri S&T in the tournament.
Opponent Histories: This weekend will be the first time the Rattlers have ever faced Henderson State, McKendree and Missouri S&T on the volleyball court. StMU holds a 2-1 edge in the series against Southeastern Oklahoma State and all three have been in straight sets. In 2022, the Rattlers swept the Savage Storm in Edmond, Okla., at the UCO/OC Festival. Then a freshman, Landri Withers led all players with 10 kills, while hitting .429 (10-1-21). Abbey Stiffler had 17 assists, Cali Nims blasted four service aces, Alyssa Koehl recorded 17 digs and Dallasstar Johnson set a school record for block assists in a three-set match with 10.Â
Middle of the Pack: The Rattlers were picked ninth in the 17-team LSC Preseason poll. St. Mary's returns all seven starters off last season's club that was 12-15, but ended on a high-note, winning two of its final three matches. The seniors on the 2024 team are DS Leah Cruz, OH Brianna Morris-Worth, S Cali Nims and RS Alicia Virthe. The Rattlers return 92.6% of their kills, 90.1% of aces, 93.4% of digs and 90.6% of their blocks from the 2023 squad.
Closing In: Junior libero Alyssa Koehl needs 117 digs for 1,000 in her career. She will become the 16th player in school history to accomplish the milestone. Senior setter Cali Nims is 16 service aces shy of 100 and will be the 13th player to hit triple digits in aces. She is also three digs shy of 700. Junior MB Dallasstar Johnson needs 21 more blocks to record 200 in her standout career. Senior RS Alicia Virthe is 56 kills away from becoming the second active player on the team with 500 career kills. She'll join Landri Withers, who enters the 2024 season with 521 kills to her name.
They're Smart Too: In addition to leading the Rattlers on the floor, junior libero Alyssa Koehl works hard in the classroom as well, being named to both the LSC All-Academic team and the CSC Academic All-District team. Cali Nims, Alicia Virthe and Landri Withers joined her on the CSC Academic All-District squad, surpassing the minimums of a 3.50 cumulative GPA and being a starter or key reserve.
Season Openers: Since joining the Division II ranks in 2000, the Rattlers are 10-14 in season openers with a 3-5 record in neutral court matches. Since Laura Ulrich became head coach, StMU is 2-1 in the first match of the year, with wins over Lubbock Christian in 2021 and Davenport in 2023. In 2022, the Rattlers were swept by 12th-ranked Davenport.
Tough Schedule: The Rattlers will face five teams this season who are either ranked or receiving votes in the AVCA Preseason Poll, including #2 Tampa and #3 West Texas A&M.Â
