FOLEY, Ala. — The Texas State volleyball program will begin its hunt to become the first program in 32 years to win four straight Sun Belt Conference tournaments on Friday, Nov. 19 when the Bobcats open play at this year's conference tournament. 

Texas State (18-11, 14-2) will play the winner of the fourth-seeded Troy Trojans out of the East Division and fifth-seeded Little Rock Trojans out of the West Division. The Bobcats' tournament-opening match will begin around 7:30 p.m. CT on Friday with the match being streamed on ESPN+.

LOOKING AT THE BOBCATS

With the release on postseason conference awards earlier in the week, Texas State senior setter Emily DeWalt made both program and conference history. DeWalt became the league's first four-time Setter of the Year. She also became Texas State's first four-time all-conference first-team selection — regardless of conference affiliation — as well as the program's first Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year. DeWalt is the Bobcats' first conference player of the year since Amber Calhoun won the 2011 Southland Conference Player of the Year. 

Texas State is seeking to become the first volleyball program since South Florida (1986-89) to win four consecutive Sun Belt Conference tournaments. The Bobcats will enter this weekend's conference tournament as the number one seed out of the West Division after posting a 14-2 conference record during the regular season. 

Texas State senior outside hitter Janell Fitzgerald, who was named this season's Sun Belt Conference Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, picked up the league's postseason offensive player of the year award, too, after leading the high-powered Bobcat offense. Fitzgerald, who enters the weekend with 1,361 career kills, has an active streak of six-straight matches with a double-double (kills, digs) and has been credited with a double-double (kills, digs) in 11 of the Bobcats' 16 conference matches this season. 

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS

Texas State is 6-1 this season against teams (Coastal Carolina, Louisiana, App State, Troy and Little Rock) from its side of the Sun Belt Conference tournament bracket. Louisiana is the only team from the bunch to have beaten the Bobcats this season when the Ragin' Cajuns won in four sets on Saturday, Oct. 2 in San Marcos. 

This season, Texas State is 3-0 against Troy and Little Rock. The Bobcats opened this season's conference schedule with a four-set win at Troy on Friday, Sept. 24. Texas State, then, beat Little Rock in straight sets in Little Rock on Friday, Oct. 15, then won, again, in four sets on Friday, Nov. 5. 

SERIES HISTORY
Since joining the Sun Belt Conference, Texas State is 16-4 in the conference's postseason tournament. The Bobcats have not lost a Sun Belt Conference tournament match since dropping a four-set match to Coastal Carolina on Nov. 19, 2017. 

In a total of 71 sets played in the Sun Belt Conference tournament, Texas State has won 50 sets or 70.4 percent of sets played. 

Seven Texas State volleyball student-athletes (Tyeranee Scott, Brooke Johnson, Janell Fitzgerald, Emily DeWalt, Jillian Slaughter, Kayla Granado and Lauren Teske) are all playing for their fourth consecutive conference tournament championship.  

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