Volleyball | 8/27/2015 11:19:00 AM

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Texas State heads to the metroplex to open up the 2015 season against Big 12 opponent TCU, No. 17 Arizona, and SMU at the SMU/TCU Crosstown Challenge. The Bobcats are set to open against TCU Friday night at 6 p.m. with matches against Arizona and SMU on Saturday at 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. respectively.
 
Fans can follow throughout the weekend at www.txstatebobcats.com and on Twitter @TexasStateVBall.
 


Match Info: SMU/TCU Crosstown Challenge
Site: University Recreation Center – Fort Worth, Texas | Moody Coliseum – Dallas, Texas
Date: Friday, Aug. 28 – Saturday, Aug. 29
 
Schedule:

Friday, August 28		Saturday, August 29
6 p.m.	Texas State at TCU	11 a.m.	Texas State vs. No. 17 Arizona
		7 p.m.	Texas State at SMU

The Series
This will be the first time the Bobcats have ever faced off against TCU. However, the Bobcats are no stranger to Big 12 opponents with matches against Baylor and Texas Tech last season.
 
Texas State and Arizona have met twice before, but the last match between the two was in 2010. Arizona has a 2-0 edge in the series with 3-0 sweeps in both 2010 and 2008.
 
The Bobcats have played SMU the most out of the trio of teams they will see this weekend, and have come out on top more often than not. Texas State has a 4-3 advantage in the all-time series against SMU with wins in the last two meetings in 2013 and 2012.
 
The last meeting, Texas State won, 3-1, after SMU made a late surge to push the third set all the way to 28-26. The Bobcats rebounded with a 25-22 win in the fourth set to clinch the match at Strahan Coliseum. In 2012, Texas State swept SMU on the road. Before those two wins, SMU had a 3-2 advantage dating back to the first meeting between the teams in 1974.
 
On the Horned Frogs
For TCU, it's a new beginning with a new coaching staff. Head Coach Jill Kramer is in her first season at the helm of TCU's program, as are all of her assistants. She returns to TCU to become the third head coach in the volleyball program's history after having graduated from TCU in 2000. Kramer was the first scholarship volleyball student-athlete in the history of TCU and holds school records in kills, kills per set and total attacks. The past five seasons she has been the head coach at West Virginia.
 
The top returners for the Horned Frogs are Preseason All-Big 12 selection Ashley Smith, senior setter Alexia Heist, senior right side Blaire Pickens, junior outside hitter Sarita Mikals, senior libero Sutton Sunstrom and junior middle blockers Regan McGuire and Natalie Gower. That group returns after a 17-15 season that saw the team finish 6-10 in Big 12 conference play.
 
Heist led the squad in assists last year, finishing with 836 while Smith led the team in kills with 333. McGuire added 193 kills and a team-leading 92 blocks while Mikals, Pickens and Gower all finished 2014 with 100 kills or more. Sunstrum tallied a team-best 405 digs. Smith, Heist and McGuire finished with 27, 25 and 20 service aces respectively.
 
On the Wildcats
Arizona comes into the weekend as the second highest ranked team the Bobcats will face this season at 17^th nationally. Oregon, Texas State's Sept. 8 opponent, is ranked 13^th in the preseason. Arizona finished 2014 with a 24-10 record and a third-place finish in the Pac-12, making an appearance in the NCAA Tournament's second round. It was the team's best season in 10 years.
 
The Wildcats return four starters and seven letterwinners, including 2014 All-America Honorable Mention and All-Pac-12 First-Team Setter Penina Snuka. The junior gave out 1,234 assists last season for an average of 10.82 assists per set with 16 service aces and 453 digs to be second on the team last year and the top returning defensive player. She added 53 blocks on the season.
 
The team's top returning hitter is junior Ashley Harris, who finished with 218 kills for a 2.14 kill per set average on a .226 hitting percentage. Senior middle blocker Halli Amaro led the squad in blocks with 95 last season, 16 of which were solo.
 
Taking over at libero will be Laura Larson after serving as the starting libero for Team USA in the World University Games over the summer.
 
On the Mustangs
Five of six starters from last season return for SMU, including the 2014 American Athletic Conference Libero of the Year. The Mustangs went 26-6 last season to set a new program record in wins with a 15-1 home mark and an 11-match win streak, both records as well. Morgan Heise set an SMU record with 626 digs to earn the league's top libero award.
 
Avery Acker, the 2013 conference Setter of the Year earned an All-America Honorable Mention last season while Janelle Giordano was an All-Region selection. Heading into this year, Acker was named the Preseason Conference Player of the Year with SMU being tabbed to finish second in the AAC. Returning starters Abbey Bybel and Cailin Bula are also both 2013 all-conference selections.
 
On the Bobcats
Texas State put together a strong season last to finish 22-13 overall with a 15-5 record in conference play. For the second consecutive year, the Bobcats went to the Sun Belt Conference Tournament Championship match. They finished the season in second place in the SBC and were picked to finish that high yet again in the SBC Coaches' Preseason Poll.
 
Two freshmen stood out for the Bobcats in 2014 with both Jordan Kohl and Lauren Kirch earning All-Conference nods while Kohl was named the SBC Freshman of the Year. Kirch led the team in both kills and blocks. Kohl was named to this year's Preseason All-SBC Team as well.
 
Texas State returns four starters and libero Sierra Smith along with nine letterwinners. That said, the Bobcats also welcome nine newcomers to the squad with six being transfers to add experience and athleticism. The top newcomer may be Jaliyah Bolden, a middle blocker from Colorado State. However, setters Emily Shelton and Erin Hoppe look to get plenty of playing time as well as middle blockers Morgan Lewis and Madison Daigle and outside hitters Claire Kreuz and Haley Henderson.
 
A Look Ahead
After the Crosstown Challenge, the Bobcats will open up the team's home slate at Strahan Coliseum on Thursday, Sept. 3, at 6:30 p.m. with I-35 Rival UTSA. The match against the Roadrunners will mark the first match of the Delta Zeta Classic which will include matchups against Prairie View A&M, Lamar and Indiana before hosting No. 13 Oregon at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 8.