Volleyball | 9/20/2017 2:42:00 PM

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State volleyball team will open Sun Belt Conference action with a pair of home matches this weekend. The maroon and gold will first host South Alabama at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 22 before welcoming Troy at noon Sept. 24. Both matches will be inside Strahan Coliseum.

Texas State is 9-0 on the opening weekend of league play since joining the Sun Belt in 2013. The Bobcats have not lost their first conference match of the season since suffering a 3-0 setback to UTSA in 2011.

MATCH 1: SOUTH ALABAMA at TEXAS STATE
Site: Strahan Coliseum – San Marcos, Texas
Date/Time: September 22 / 6:30 p.m.
Live Stats: HERE
Radio: KTSW 89.9
TV/Online Stream: HERE
All-Time Series Record: Texas State leads 7-2

MATCH 2: TROY at TEXAS STATE
Site: Strahan Coliseum – San Marcos, Texas
Date/Time: September 24 / Noon
Live Stats: HERE
Radio: KTSW 89.9
TV/Online Stream: HERE
All-Time Series Record: Texas State leads 8-0

AMERICA'S LONGEST-TENURED STAFF
•    The Texas State full-time coaching staff consists of head coach Karen Chisum, associate head coach Tracy Smith and assistant coach Sean Huiet.
•    The trio has been at Texas State for a combined 66 years (38/16/12), a mark which is by far the highest in the nation for any coaching staff. The next closest is Texas A&M at just 52 years, while Penn State ranks third at 47 years.
•    For comparison's sake, the respective coaching staffs of this weekend's opponents of South Alabama (8) and Troy (2) have only been at their schools for a combined 10 total years.

A LOOK AT TEXAS STATE
•    The Bobcats have the most wins and best win percentage of any team in the Sun Belt Conference. They are one of only two teams who currently sport a winning record (Arkansas State, 7-6) in the league.
•    TXST presently leads the conference in opponent hitting percentage (.169), while ranking second in assists (12.36), kills (13.09) and digs (16.25).
•    Other than digs in 2013, Texas State has never finished a campaign leading the Sun Belt in a statistical category.
•    The maroon and gold became members of the SBC in 2013.
•    Texas State finished second in the SBC West Division last year and advanced to the semifinals of the 2016 SBC Championship.
•    TXST is 3-1 at home, 2-4 on neutral grounds and 3-1 in true road matches this season.
•    The Bobcats own eight non-conference victories this season, which is the most since 2013.
•    TXST began the season 8-3 but was swept in all three matches this past weekend at the Baylor Classic.

STREAK SNAPPERS
•    Texas State put a stop to two long win streaks last week in the final week of non-conference play.
•    On Sept. 10, Texas State upended Houston Baptist 3-0. The Huskies entered the contest with an unblemished 7-0 mark before being dispatched of by the Bobcats.
•    On Sept. 12, the maroon and gold knocked off Stephen F. Austin 3-1 in Nacogdoches. The Lady Jacks were riding an 11-match win streak, which led the nation at the time. SFA also had its 11-match home win streak stifled.

A LOOK AT SOUTH ALABAMA
•    South Alabama sports a 5-5 mark this season.
•    After dropping their first three matches of the season, the Jaguars have won five of their last seven.
•    Key wins have come over McNeese, Southern Mississippi, Clemson and Ole Miss.
•    Losses have been to Tulane (twice), Alabama, Auburn and Ole Miss.
•    USA is 2-4 on the road.
•    Texas State owns a 7-2 record over South Alabama in a rivalry that began in 2013. The TXST won three of the first five meetings and is now on a four-match win streak.

A LOOK AT TROY
•    Troy enters the weekend at 5-9.
•    The Trojans will face UTA in Arlington two days prior to taking on Texas State in San Marcos.
•    Troy began the season 0-5 but has since posted a 5-4 mark in the last nine matches.
•    Key wins have come over Winthrop, UAB, South Carolina State and Southern.
•    Losses have been to South Carolina, Mercer, Morehead State and Alabama.
•    Troy is 0-4 on the road.
•    Texas State has never lost to the Trojans and will enter the contest with an 8-0 record in the all-time series that began in 1997. The Bobcats have swept Troy in three of the last four meetings.

CHISUM REACHES WIN NO. 850
•    With a decisive 3-0 triumph over previously undefeated Houston Baptist on Sept. 9, Coach Chisum reached win No. 850 for her career.
•    She is one of only five active coaches with at least 850 career victories, and she is one of just 11 coaches in the history of NCAA Division I women's volleyball to reach the illustrious mark.
•    She will be honored for her historic achievement prior to Friday's match against South Alabama.

THE LAST TIME OUT
•    Texas State ended the Jason's Deli Baylor Classic with a 3-1 loss (17-25, 25-19, 25-22, 25-15) to St. John's Sept. 16 inside Ferrell Center.
 •    The Bobcats succumbed to defeat for the third-straight time, while the Johnnies claimed the first meeting in school history between the two programs.
 •    Amy Pflughaupt paced the maroon and gold with a match-high 18 kills, while Megan Porter added 14 digs. Brooke Johnson tallied 23 assists and 11 digs, while Erin Hoppe dished out 19 assists. Micah Dinwiddie led the back row with 18 digs.
•    St. John's had match highs in kills (56-54), hitting percentage (.239-.194), assists (52-51), digs (67-55), and blocks (12-9). Both teams finished with a trio of aces.
 
DAIGLE HONORED AS TOP DEFENDER
•    Madison Daigle was selected as the Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 11.
•    The junior middle blocker helped lead the Texas State volleyball team to a 4-1 record, which included a runner-up effort at the Creeds & Crests Classic.
•    She tallied 34 blocks (1.62/set) and added nine digs (0.43/set) over the course of the five matches, while also registering seven service aces and 59 kills (2.81/set) on a .312 attack percentage.
•    Daigle posted her first career double-double with career highs in both kills (16) and blocks (10) in a five-set win over UTSA. She also registered a career-high three digs in the victory. She had 15 kills and nine blocks against Sam Houston State, and eight digs and a career-high three aces against UMass Lowell.
•    The honor was the first defensive accolade for Daigle and her third weekly award overall. She twice was selected as the Sun Belt Conference Freshman of the Week in 2015 (Nov. 2, Nov. 9)
 •    Daigle became the fourth Texas State volleyball player to be named SBC Defensive Player of the Week since the maroon and gold joined the league in 2013. She joins Sierra Smith (Oct. 5, 2015), Lauren Kirch (Sept. 5, 2016) and current sophomore Micah Dinwiddie (Oct. 17 & Oct. 31, 2016).

DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINES
•    Four different members of the maroon and gold have recorded at least one double-double this season.
•    Megan Porter - who entered her sophomore campaign with one double-double on her resume - has tallied six this season. She has reached double-figure kills and digs against Cincinnati, Sam Houston State, UTSA (twice), SMU, and Stephen F. Austin.
•    Freshman Brooke Johnson owns six double-doubles in assists and digs against SMU, Houston Baptist, Stephen F. Austin, Baylor, UTSA and St. John's.
•    Newcomer Amy Pflughaupt has posted at least 10 kills/digs against Cincinnati, Sam Houston State, SMU and UTSA
•    Junior Madison Daigle recorded career highs in both kills (16) and blocks (10) against UTSA.

2017 TXST AWARD WATCH LIST
    Below is a list of all awards won by Bobcats in 2017.
•    Erin Hoppe - Sun Belt Preseason Setter of the Year
•    Jaliyah Bolden - Preseason All-Sun Belt
•    Erin Hoppe - Preseason All-Sun Belt
•    Megan Porter - Xavier Tournament All-Tournament Team
•    Effie Zielinski - Xavier Tournament All-Tournament Team
•    Madison Daigle - Creeds & Classic All-Tournament Team
•    Megan Porter - Creeds & Classic All-Tournament Team
•    Madison Daigle - SBC Defensive Player of the Week (Sept. 12)
•    Micah Dinwiddie - Baylor Classic All-Tournament Team (Best Defender)

2017 CAREER-HIGH PERFORMANCES
    Below is a list of all Bobcat returners who have registered single-match career highs in 2017.
•    Jaliyah Bolden - 12 blocks (SMU), .500 attack percentage (Cincinnati)
•    Madison Daigle - 16 kills (Cincinnati/UTSA), 10 blocks & 5 digs (UTSA), 3 aces (Houston Baptist/UMass Lowell/UTSA)
•    Marissa Kindred - 8 kills and 3 blocks (Sam Houston State), .167 hitting percentage and 5 digs (UTSA)
•    Micah Dinwiddie - 8 assists (Cincinnati)
•    Megan Porter - 18 kills and 3 assists (Sam Houston State), .500 hitting percentage (UMass Lowell), 26 digs (Cincinnati)
•    Konner Wood - 10 digs (UTSA)

FRESH FACES
•    During non-conference play this season, the Bobcats faced off against six teams never-before seen in program history.
•    The maroon and gold went 3-3 against its new friends, defeating Cincinnati, Xavier and UMass Lowell, while falling to VCU, Western Michigan and St. John's.

TXST SELECTED 2ND IN SBC POLL
•    Texas State earned 57 points and one first-place vote to be selected to finish in second place in the west division of the 2017 SBC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
•    Defending west champs Arkansas State were projected to again win the division.
•    UTA was slotted third, while Little Rock, Louisiana and ULM rounded out the division.
•    Coastal Carolina was picked to win the east division. Before the Chanticleers were South Alabama, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Appalachian State and Troy.

--TxStateBobcats.com--