SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State volleyball team is set to begin the 2019 season in front of the Bobcat faithful on Aug. 30-31 at Strahan Arena. The reigning Sun Belt Champions will play two matches on Friday beginning with a noon match vs. Liberty and end day one with a 7 p.m. tilt vs. No. 14 USC. The Bobcats will conclude the opening weekend with a 7 p.m. match vs. Northern Iowa Saturday.
 
The Bobcats are coming off a historic 2018 season that saw them claim their first Sun Belt Regular Season Championship title, their second Sun Belt Conference Tournament Championship (2013), and their first NCAA Tournament victory.
 
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Live Stats vs. Liberty - Statbroadcast
Live Stats vs. No. 14 USC - Statbroadcast
Live Stats vs. (RV) Northern Iowa - Statbroadcast
 
SETTING THE SCENE
• The Bobcats are picked to repeat as Sun Belt Conference Champions after receiving all 12 first-place votes, gathering 72 total points. The Cats are also receiving six votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association's (AVCA) 2019 Preseason Coaches' Poll. Texas State will enter the season receiving votes for the first time in program history.
• Of Texas State's three opponents this weekend, two are noted in the AVCA Preseason Coaches' Poll, including No. 14 USC and Northern Iowa who are receiving 13 votes.
• Texas State head coach Karen Chisum is in her 40th season at the helm of the program and is five wins shy from becoming the seventh coach in NCAA Division I volleyball to win 900 matches (895-550-3).
• Chisum, who won the 2018 Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year award ranks No. 3 among active NCAA Division I volleyball coaches in wins, and No. 13 all-time across all NCAA Divisions.  
• The Maroon and Gold will return 10 student-athletes from the historic 2018 season, including 2018 Freshman and Setter of the Year Emily DeWalt, and two other 2018 All-Sun Belt First Team selections in senior outside hitter Cheyenne Huskey and sophomore outside hitter Janell Fitzgerald.
• Four Bobcats were voted to the 2019 Sun Belt Conference Preseason Team and the club swept all three specialty awards. DeWalt was tabbed as the 2019 Sun Belt Preseason Setter of the Year, Huskey was named the 2019 Sun Belt Preseason Offensive Player of the Year (first in program history), and senior defensive specialist Micah Dinwiddie was picked as the 2019 Sun Belt Preseason Defensive Player of the Year. Fitzgerald was the fourth selection to the 2019 Sun Belt Preseason Team.
• Dinwiddie ranks No. 2 in career digs at 1,487 and is 160 digs shy from passing former Bobcat Sierra Smith (1,646) to become the program's all-time leader.
• Texas State is 11-1 in their last 12 home matches and enters 2019 with a seven-match home winning streak that dates back to Sept. 28 when they defeated Little Rock, 3-1.
 
SCOUTING TEXAS STATE
• Texas State finished 2018 with a 27-7 record and an impressive 15-1 conference mark. Both are the most wins since 2011 prior to joining the Sun Belt Conference.
• The Bobcats claimed their first NCAA Tournament victory after topping Rice 3-1 in the first round.
• TXST ended the 2018 campaign with a No. 22 RPI ranking, the highest in program history.
• For the second consecutive year, the Bobcats paced the Sun Belt in overall wins (27) and home wins (11). Statistically, Texas State led the league in hitting percentage (.263), kills per set (14.10), and assists per set (13.39).
• The Bobcats have reached the 20-win plateau for the fifth time in six seasons since joining the Sun Belt and coach Chisum has a total of 31 winning seasons and 25 campaigns with at least 20 victories.
•  Texas State had three student-athletes finish with at least 300 kills in 2018, including Huskey (358), former Bobcat Amy Pflughaupt (322), and Fitzgerald (313).  
 
SCOUTING LIBERTY
• The Flames posted a 15-17 overall record in 2018 and was 10-6 in their inaugural season in the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN).
• Liberty earned a No. 4 seeding in the ASUN Conference Tournament, becoming the first team since 2005 to reach the league's tournament in their first year (East Tennessee State). The Flames reached the semifinals before being swept by the eventual tournament champions, Florida Gulf Coast.
• The Flames were picked to finish fourth in the 2019 ASUN Conference Preseason Poll and will be led by a pair of seniors in outside hitter Casey Goodwin and middle blocker Anna Gragg. Both seniors were named to the conference preseason team.
• This will be the first meeting between Liberty and Texas State.
 
SCOUTING NO. 14 USC
• The Women of Troy open the season ranked No. 14 in the AVCA Preseason Coaches' Poll and are one of six ranked Pac-12 teams, including No. 1 Stanford, the 2018 National Champions.
• USC concluded 2018 with a 22-11 overall record and a 13-7 mark in the Pac-12 which tied for second. USC made its 28th consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament and advanced to the second round before being upset by San Diego.
• USC was picked to finished second in the 2019 Pac-12 Preseason Coaches' Poll and had three selections on the preseason team in senior outside hitter Khalia Lanier, junior outside hitter Brooke Botkin, and sophomore setter Racquel Lázaro.
• In 2018, Botkin was named to the AVCA All-America Second Team, while Lázaro was the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and joined Lanier on the AVCA All-America Honorable Mention list.
• The Trojans are 2-0 all-time against the Bobcats. The last meeting between the two clubs was Aug. 25, 2012 on a neutral court. This will be the second meeting in San Marcos with the first on Aug. 26, 2006. USC swept both matches.
   
SCOUTING NORTHERN IOWA
• Northern Iowa is receiving 13 votes in the AVCA Preseason Coaches' Poll after a 24-10 record in 2018 and a 16-2 mark in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) to be named the regular-season champions.
• UNI went on to win the MVC Tournament and earned the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament but was bounced out in the first round after falling to Pepperdine in five sets.
• The Panthers are led by four 2018 All-MVC honorees, including a pair of first-team selections in senior setter Rachel Koop and senior outside hitter Karlie Taylor, and two second-team selections in junior middle hitter Kate Busswitz and junior outside hitter Jaydlin Seehase.
• This will be the first meeting between Northern Iowa and Texas State.
 
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