This Week in Rattlers Soccer
Wednesday, Sept. 30 • West Texas A&M (1-5-3, 0-3-2) at St. Mary's (5-3-2, 3-2-1) • 7 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 3 • St. Mary's at Oklahoma Christian (6-3, 3-2) • 1 p.m.
Week Six: St. Mary's Women's Soccer stays at home for the final game of September, hosting West Texas A&M on Wednesday at 7 before traveling to Oklahoma Christian for a 1 p.m. Saturday match-up.
A Look Back: St. Mary's dropped a close 1-0 game at No. 16 Texas Woman's on Wednesday before coming home for a 1-1 draw against St. Edward's. Freshman Kamrynn Martinez scored on a penalty kick in the 87th minute to draw even with the Hilltoppers and give each team 1/2 of a point in the annual Battle of the Saints.
History with West Texas A&M: The Lady Buffs hold a 11-4-4 lead in the all-time series against St. Mary's, though the Rattlers have won three straight and are 3-3-1 since Kevin Driggs came from WT to StMU. Wednesday will be the fourth contest at Sigma Beta Chi Field with the Lady Buffs holding a 2-1 edge.
Scouting the Lady Buffs: Braely Martinez leads WT with two goals and four points as the Lady Buffs have scored only five goals through their first nine games. Franciezca Blancaflor has made 42 saves in goal in nine starts and allowed 11 goals. WT is looking for its first win in conference play as they are 0-3-2.
History with Oklahoma Christian: St. Mary's holds a commanding 14-3-1 lead in the all-time series with Oklahoma Christian and has won four-straight in the series. The Rattlers are unbeaten in the series since the two teams joined the Lone Star Conference, with a 5-0-1 record over the Eagles.
Scouting the Eagles: OC trails StMU by only one point in the LSC standings with a 3-2 mark, while the Rattlers are 3-2-1. Caid Jefferson leads the team with four goals and nine points, while eight different Eagles have at least one point. Breanna Wooten has started all eight games in goal where she's made 29 saves and surrendered only six goals.
Change in Keeper: Head Coach Kevin Driggs made a switch in the starting keeper this week, putting freshman Callie Gilliam in goal. The rookie responded by allowing only one goal in each game and making a combined 10 saves, including nine against No. 16 Texas Woman's in Denton on Wednesday. Gilliam now has 14 saves on the season with a 1-1-1 record.
Youth Movement: Against St. Edward's on Saturday, there were seven freshmen on the pitch to start the game, three sophomores and a junior transfer. Five of the six to start all 10 games are freshmen, while Gracie Van Sluis is the lone sophomore to start in all 10.
Net Finders: This season's Rattlers are averaging 1.90 goals per game, which ranks ninth on the Division II scoring list in St. Mary's history. The 2002 team holds the record with 2.71 goals per game, as they scored 57 goals on the year. The all-time mark of 4.05 goals per game is held by the 1997 team.
Made to be Broken: The 17 goals by the 2026 freshman class breaks the St. Mary's record for goals by a first-year class, previously held by the 2002 team with 16. Kamrynn Martinez (8), Helen Lazaro (7), Emilee Durante (1) and Victoria Morales (1) have combined to score 17 of the team's 19 goals this season, while in 2002, seven different freshmen each scored at least once and Kennie Boxill and Venessa Garza led the freshman class with five goals each.
Double Digits: The Rattlers are unbeaten in their last 10 home matches (7-0-3) at Sigma Beta Chi Field. The team last lost at home on Sept. 24, 2025 against Texas Woman's, going 4-0-1 to end the 2025 home season and are 3-0-2 so far in 2026.
Finding the Goal: The freshmen duo of Kamrynn Martinez (8) and Helen Lazaro (7) currently rank second and third on the season freshman goals list in St. Mary's history, trailing only the 11 that Kaitie Kasperitis netted in 2011. Lazaro is tied with Kelly Felts (2003) and Alexia Maldonado (2016) for third on the list.
Hat Trick: For the 25th time in school history a StMU player scored three or more goals in a single game when Helen Lazaro scored a hat trick against UT Permian Basin.
Player of the Week: Freshman Helen Lazaro earned the team's first Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week award of the year after scoring four of the team's five goals, including a hat trick against UT Permian Basin on Sept. 12. She kicked both game-winning goals.
Solid 1-2 Punch: St. Mary's has two of the top three scorers in the Lone Star Conference as Kamrynn Martinez ranks second with 0.80 goals per game, while Helen Lazaro is third with 0.70 per contest. Both rank in the top 50 in the nation, with Martinez 21st and Lazaro 36th.
A Rarity: Freshman Kamrynn Martinez scored a goal in each of the first five games of the season, and becomes the first Rattlers to score in five straight contests. Kristal Williams netted five goals in four games from Sept. 28 through Oct. 11, 2014 as a sophomore. Martinez leads the Lone Star Conference in shots (5.67), shots on goal (2.50) and is tied for second in total goals (5), and all three rank in the top 20 of Division II.
Prognosticators: St. Mary's was voted sixth in the Lone Star Conference Preseason poll by the league's coaches, SIDs and media. The team received one first-place vote and 443 points, narrowly missing out on the top five. Senior Elena Kossler and sophomore Marily Garza Contreras were named offensive and defensive players to watch in the Lone Star, respectively.
Sister Act: For the first time since the 2012 season, the St. Mary's lineup features a pair of sisters on the team in sophomore Alyssah Martinez and freshman Kamrynn Martinez. Alyssah played in 15 games in 2025 as a true freshman and welcomes her younger sister, Kamrynn to the team for 2026. The last pair of sisters to play for the Gold and Blue were Emilie and Leah Snelson, who played together in 2011 and 2012.
Making History: Head Coach Kevin Driggs became the third coach in StMU Women's Soccer history to win 50 games in their career with win No. 50 against Oklahoma Christian on October 4, 2025. He is second in school history with his 60 victories, trailing only Corwyn Ritch (2001-19), who won 159 matches in his 18 years.
Small Senior Class: There are only two seniors on the roster for 2026 in forward Elena Kossler and midfielder Michelle Ramirez, though both are currently sidelined. With the new NCAA eligibility rules, Ramirez could return for 2027 if wanted. The team also has six juniors, 15 sophomores and 10 freshmen.
