Match 11 – Midwestern State (4-6) at Texas A&M-Kingsville (5-3)
Saturday, Sept. 19, 2015 | 2 p.m.
Steinke Center | Kingsville, Texas
Live Stats: JavelinaAthletics.com
 
FOR STARTERS
Midwestern State opens up Lone Star Conference play Saturday with a trip to Texas A&M-Kingsville for a 2 p.m. match against the Javelinas.  

The Mustangs finished with a 3-3 record last week, claiming wins over Southwestern Oklahoma State and Texas Wesleyan in its home opener. The Mustangs then traveled to the Arkansas Tech Tournament in Russellville, picking up a win over Missouri Southern while falling to Arkansas Tech, Newman (Kan.) and Ouachita Baptist (Ark.).

Senior outside hitter Hunter Porter was named to the all-tournament team after leading the Mustangs with 3.50 kills per set on a .285 hitting percentage. Porter recorded double-digit kills in all four contests with a season-best 15 coming against Newman. She wrapped up the weekend hitting .433 with 14 kills and just one error against Ouachita Baptist.  

SCOUTING THE JAVELINAS
- Texas A&M-Kingsville is 5-3 on the season and will face Cameron (Okla.) and Our Lady of the Lake (Texas) before taking on Midwestern
- The Javelinas hosted the Emerald Beach Hotel Javelina Volleyball Invitational last weekend, going 2-2 with wins over St. Mary's (Texas) and Lubbock Christian (Texas) while dropping decisions to Bentley (Mass.) and Drury (Mo.)
- Head coach Tanya Allen earned her 69th career win after a 3-0 sweep over St. Mary's to become the program's winningest coach
- The trio of junior middle blocker Ashley Bukowski, sophomore outside hitter Krystal Faison and junior outside hitter Valarie Moehrig provide a dangerous triple threat for TAMUK opponents as all three rank inside the top 10 in kills in the LSC
- Faison leads the way with an average of 3.00 kills per set while Moehrig (2.97 kills/set) and Bukowski (2.94 kills/set) are close behind
- Sophomore defensive specialist Brett Zaccardo is third in the LSC with 4.66 digs per set while sophomore setter Casey Klobedans is fifth in the league with 9.81 assists per set
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
- Texas A&M-Kingsville holds a 16-11 all-time record over the Mustangs with a 7-3 mark inside the Steinke Center
- The Javelinas pulled out two wins over Midwestern last season with a 3-2 victory in Wichita Falls and a 3-1 win in Kingsville
- The Mustangs swept the Javelinas in 2013 with a 3-1 road win and 3-0 sweep at home
- The two squads first faced each other back in 1989 with Midwestern coming away with a 3-0 victory at the St. Edward's Tournament in Austin
 
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 IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
- After two weeks of play, Midwestern State saw itself near the top in several national statistical categories
- Currently, Midwestern is tied for ninth in the country with 432 total assists this season while ranking 10th with 609 digs and 459 kills
- The Mustangs are third nationally with 1,445 total attacks this season and rank 11th with 40.14 attacks per set
 
ACE YOUR FACE
- Junior defensive specialist Madelyn Johnson has helped bring momentum to the Mustangs with her play at the service line this season
- Through 36 sets, Johnson is second nationally with 21 aces and ranks 49th with .58 aces per set
 
DISHING IT OUT
- True freshman setter Hayden Blair has had to adjust to the college game pretty quickly, taking over the reins as MSU's primary setter this season
- The McKinney native has posted a season-best 41 assists twice in wins over Pace (N.Y.) and Southwestern Oklahoma State
- Blair is currently tied for 27th in the country with 320 assists on the season
 
BETTIS LEADING THE WAY
- Sophomore outside hitter Meghan Bettis has already surpassed her kill total from the 2014 season, leading the Mustangs offense with 105 kills at 2.92 per set this season
- The Dripping Springs native has led the Mustangs in kills in five matches with a season-best 18 coming against Ouachita Baptist last week
- Bettis is tied for 16th nationally with 357 total attacks
 
LOOKING AHEAD
- The Mustangs continue LSC play Tuesday with a trip to Lawton, Oklahoma, to take on Cameron in a 7 p.m. contest