Midwestern State vs Lubbock Christian
Saturday, Sept 25 – 12 p.m.
D.L. Ligon Coliseum (Wichita Falls, Texas)
All-Time Series: LCU leads 15-17
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WICHITA FALLS, Texas -- .Midwestern State (3-8, 1-2 LSC) gears up for another Lone Star Conference showdown at D.L. Ligon Coliseum on Saturday afternoon. The visiting Lubbock Christian Lady Chaps (7-4, 3-0 LSC) come into town to face the Mustangs with a first serve start time at noon.

FIVE STORY LINES

1 |  Lauryn Bourne is the Mustangs' biggest offensive threat this season as she leads the team with a conference fourth best 119 kills. The outside hitter has tallied 129.5 total points on the season to average 3.16 per set, good for 20th in the Lone Star Conference. On the attack, Bourne has the third-highest attempts in the LSC with 371. She also registered 2.90 kills per set, which lands her 14th in the conference with a season-high 19 kills in the first game of the season against Colorado Christian (9/3). On the defensive side, the sophomore is second on the team with 112 digs, tallying a career-high 29 digs against Texas A&M International (9/17). In the 2020 season, Bourne notched 148 kills for a 2.85 average and added 3.12 digs per set.

2 |  Lissette Lefforge continues her presence on the net as she tops the Mustangs with 37 blocks, a Lone Star Conference fourth place sitting. For her average, the senior amassed her 0.75 blocks per set from last year with 0.90 in 2021. This stands eighth in the LSC. Her best performance came against Seattle Pacific (9/4) when she registered eight blocks on the match - all as block assists. The middle blocker now has six games with four or more blocks. In addition, Lefforge averages 2.83 points per game and has tallied 87 kills. In 2020, Lefforge had 162 kills and averaged 2.28 pet set.

3|   With 221 assists thus far, Autumn Roach commands MSU's setting spot and earns ninth best in the Lone Star Conference. Her average sits at 5.39 per set, up from 5.14 from 2020. Also in the previous season, Roach collected 365 helpers along with 30 service aces on the year. This season, the sophomore has six matches with 20 or more assists. Her season-high 38 sets was gained in the five-set battle at Texas A&M International (9/17). Against Texas A&M-Kingsville (9/18), Roach collected two service aces in three sets.

4 |  Reagan Willms is the top server for Midwestern State in her freshman year. The setter has 13 aces with an average 0.42 per set to hit seventh in the Lone Star Conference. She landed five aces against Texas A&M International (9/17) and four versus Eastern New Mexico (9/10).

5 |  Midwestern State as a team sits in the top ten in the LSC in three different categories. MSU has collected 435 assists throughout the year with a season-high 63 against TAMIU (9/17). This earns the team seventh in the conference. The conference eighth highest kills has racked up to 472 for MSU with the highest coming against Texas A&M International (9/17) with 67. The Mustangs' total attacks for the year sits at 1,382 with 204 gathered at International (9/17), coming in eighth in the LSC.

HEAD COACH VALERIE ARMSTRONG enters her fourth season at the helm of the Midwestern State volleyball program. In the shortened 2020 season, the team amounted a 10-7 overall record, the best winning percentage since 2008. Another feat from last year was the program's first Lone Star Conference postseason win that came against DBU (3/23). Over three season, Armstrong has obtained a 23-51 record. Before coming to Midwestern State in 2018, she had experience at all levels of collegiate volleyball. In Division I, Armstrong was assistant coach at Binghamton and Alabama State. She saw time as a head coach at two junior colleges including Vernon College and Colby Community College. Her first coaching job was the assistant at NAIA University of the Southwest in 2007 after graduating from Oklahoma Panhandle State. There she earned OPSU Female Athlete of the Year honors after leading the Aggies with 2.50 kills and 0.47 blocks per set as a senior in 2006.

SERIES WITH THE LADY CHAPS
Overall, Lubbock Christian leads Midwestern State with a 17-15 record between the two teams. The last meeting was in 2019 when LCU took a 3-2  win at their home court against MSU. This was the Mustangs first conference facing against the Lady Chaps, with the series at 0-1. The two teams first met in 1987 when Midwestern State outsmarted Lubbock Christian 3-1 in Wichita Falls, Texas.