Match 24 – Midwestern State (5-18, 0-9 LSC) vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville (14-9, 4-4 LSC)
Friday, Oct. 23, 2015 | 7 p.m.
D.L. Ligon Coliseum | Wichita Falls, Texas
Live Stats: MSUMustangs.com
Live Video: MSUMustangs.tv


FOR STARTERS
Midwestern State begins a three-match homestand Friday when the Mustangs host Texas A&M-Kingsville for a 7 p.m. Lone Star Conference match at D.L. Ligon Coliseum.

The Mustangs suffered two 3-1 setbacks last weekend on the road at West Texas A&M and Eastern New Mexico. Midwestern rallied for a third-set win against the Lady Buffs before seeing a late fourth set lead slip away in a loss Friday. Against Eastern New Mexico, the Mustangs jumped out to a 1-0 lead before the Greyhounds reeled off three-straight wins to come away with the victory Sunday.

SCOUTING THE JAVELINAS
– Texas A&M-Kingsville holds a 14-9 overall record and 4-4 mark in the Lone Star Conference for fourth in the league standings
– The Javelinas come in winners of seven of their last nine matches including a win over then-No. 24 Angelo State, handing the Rambelles their first conference loss
– Sophomore outside hitter Krystal Faison, junior outside hitter Valarie Moehrig and junior middle blocker Ashley Bukowski have all reached the 250-kill plateau to create a dangerous triple threat attack this season
– Faison leads the Javelinas with 267 kills (3.10/set) while Moehrig has a team-best 3.14 kills per set with 264 on the season
– Bukowski has added 255 kills (3.00/set) to the Javelinas offense
– Sophomore setter Casey Klobedans is fifth in the nation with 875 assists this season while sophomore libero Brett Zaccardo has totaled 426 digs for 24th in the country
– Head coach Tanya Allen is in her fifth season with the Javelinas, carrying a 79-70 record
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
– Midwestern State is 11-17 all-time against Texas A&M-Kingsville but holds a 6-4 advantage at Ligon Coliseum
– The Mustangs faced the Javelinas in their LSC opener last month, dropping a 3-1 decision in Kingsville
– Midwestern State last picked up a win over the Javelinas on Nov. 14, 2013 with a 3-0 sweep in Wichita Falls
 
RAWSON ERA BEGINS
– Former Midwestern State assistant coach Natalie Rawson was tabbed the eighth head volleyball coach in program history back on Mar. 24, 2015
– Rawson spent the last two seasons as the head coach at Newman (Kan.), leading the Jets to a 30-26 record and their first Heartland Conference postseason appearance in four years in 2014
– Rawson spent three seasons as an assistant coach at MSU from 2010-12
 
MUSTANGS SPORT YOUTHFUL ROSTER IN 2015
– Rawson returns to a young roster in her first season back at Midwestern State
– The Mustangs' roster features nine newcomers with eight true freshmen and one junior college transfer on the 17-player roster
– Midwestern's roster includes one lone senior and just four upperclassmen
– With a couple of injuries to the Mustangs upperclassmen, the newcomers have seen a considerable amount of court time this season
– The Mustangs have started at least three freshmen in all but three matches this season with five appearing in the starting lineup against Lubbock Christian (Sept. 26), Texas A&M-Commerce (Oct. 3), Dallas Baptist (Oct. 3), Angelo State (Oct. 9) and Tarleton State (Oct. 10)
 
PORTER PACING MUSTANGS
– Following a career-high 16 kills in Midwestern State's win over Southern Nazarene, senior outside hitter Hunter Porter became the Mustangs' kills leader
– Porter is averaging 2.49 kills per set for 199 on a .146 hitting percentage
– In her first season playing for the Mustangs in 2014, the Red Oak native tallied a team-best 2.48 kills per set for 223 on the year
 
DIX CLIMBING RECORD BOOKS
– Freshman libero Matti Dix has recorded seven 20-plus dig performances this season with a career-best 32 coming against West Texas A&M back on Sept. 29
– Dix also had a 31-dig outing come in a win over Southern Nazarene on Oct. 6
– With 381 digs currently to her name, Dix looks to be on her way to climbing inside the top 10 for single-season digs in the Midwestern State record books, needing just 113 more to reach the mark of 494 set by Kelli Ridenhour in 1994
– The Bushland native could become the first freshman to appear on the single-season digs list since Shay Velasquez recorded 572 in her freshman season back in 2005
 
DISHING IT OUT
– True freshman setter Hayden Blair has had to adjust to the college game pretty quickly, appearing in 84 sets and making 22 starts to lead the Mustangs offense
– The McKinney product has posted a season-best 41 assists three times in wins over Pace (N.Y.), Southwestern Oklahoma State and Southern Nazarene (Okla.) and has totaled a team-best 11 double-doubles
 
LOOKING AHEAD
– Midwestern State next hosts Eastern New Mexico for a 6 p.m. contest Tuesday at Ligon Coliseum