Caelyn Robel with Tongue Out Celebrating Point

Volleyball

Texas State Volleyball Kicks Off Inaugural Pac-12 Schedule With Utah State and Colorado State

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Texas State Volleyball returns to Strahan Arena to kick off the Pac-12 era with a pair of matches against Utah State and Colorado State. 

MATCH INFO
  • Thursday, Sept. 24 vs. Utah State (6 p.m. CT)
  • Saturday, Sept. 26 vs. Colorado State (12 p.m. CT)

ABOUT THE BOBCATS
  • The Bobcats posted a 5-6 record during their non-conference schedule that included a five-set reverse sweep of UT Arlington. 
  • Senior Brooke Bentke is leading the Bobcats' offense with 114 kills so far. Sophomore Peyton McKee is right behind Bentke with 92 kills. Bentke is working with a .216 hitting percentage this season while McKee is working with a .224.
  • Defensively, the biggest moment of the non-conference season was when redshirt freshman Ashley Euston posted 10 blocks in a single match against North Texas on Sept. 12. 
  • Breaking down the matches by sets, the Bobcats are 1-3 in five set matches, 1-1 in four set matches, and 3-2 in three set matches.
  • Offensively, two players in two different matches posted 15+ kills: India Bennett recorded a team-high 19 against A&M-Corpus Christi and Caelyn Robel posted a career-high 17 kills against Houston Christian. 
  • As a team, the Bobcats are out-blocking their opponents, 94.5-79.0 and are out-digging their opponents, 500-486.
  • On Sept. 5, Anna Blaine passed 1,000 career assists with 48 in the match against A&M-CC.
  • India Bennett is currently ranked fourth in the Pac-12 in hitting percentage at .349 [85-25-172] with a minimum of three total attacks per set. 
  • Anna Blaine sits sixth in assists per set at 7.09 and has 305 assists so far this season. 
  • Ashley Euston has shot up the leaderboard in blocks across the Pac-12. The redshirt freshman is currently sixth with an average of 1.19 blocks per set. What's most impressive is Euston with the second-fewest sets played so far amongst the blocking leaders. Talk about efficient defense! 
  • Bennett also joins Euston on the blocking leaderboard, ranked eighth with a rate of 1.11 blocks per set. 
  • Brooke Bentke and Jasmine Purakal round out the Pac-12 rankings for the Bobcats. Bentke is ranked 10th in service aces at a rate of 0.35 service aces per set. Purakal is also ranked 10th in digs per set, currently averaging 2.86.
  • The Bobcats are working their way onto the Pac-12 leaderboard as a team with a .222 hitting percentage to rank them third across the conference. 
  • Texas State's match against SFA had the most offensive action of any three-set match across the conference so far. Against the Ladyjacks, the Bobcats posted a conference-high 52 kills and 50 assists. The team's .358 hitting percentage is also tied for the fifth highest hitting percentage of any match played by a Pac-12 member so far.


SERIES HISTORY
Against the Aggies
  • The Bobcats are 1-4 all-time against the Aggies.
  • The last meeting between the two programs was on Nov. 14, 2012, in Logan, Utah. The Aggies swept Texas State, 3-0.
  • When playing in San Marcos, Texas, the Bobcats are 0-1.
Against the Rams
  • Texas State has only played Colorado State once in its 59-year history. The 'Cats ae 1-0 all-time against the Rams.
  • The last meeting between the two squads was on Oct. 24, 1981, when Texas State took the match, 2-0.
  • The Bobcats have never hosted the Rams in San Marcos, Texas.

SCOUTING THE AGGIES
  • The Aggies currently have a 1-9 record with their lone win coming against Utah Valley in a four-set tilt.
  • Utah State is currently hitting .175 on the season with 419 kills, 207 errors, and 1,208 total attempts.
  • Leading the Aggies' offense is Sami Blackett with 116 kills at a rate of 3.31 kills per set and a .140 [116-65-363] hitting percentage. Blackett also leads Utah State in service aces with 13 so far this season and is averaging 0.37 service aces per set. The junior posted a season-high 20 kills against Utah Valley.
  • On defense, Ava Napierski is leading the way with 27 total blocks so far with 25 block assists and two solo blocks. Napierski is posting an average of .75 blocks per set and tallied a season-high five blocks against Iowa State. 
  • Anchoring the back row is Lily LaFlesch with 136 digs and an average of 3.78 digs per set. LaFlesch has posted 20 digs in back-to-back matches against Weber State and Utah Valley.

SCOUTING THE RAMS
  • Colorado State is knocking on the door of the AVCA rankings, receiving seven votes this last week in the AVCA Top 25 poll.
  • The Rams' votes comes after a week that saw CSU defeat No. 17 Colorado on Sept. 18. Overall, Colorado State has a 7-3 record so far this season. Against ranked opponents, the Rams are 1-2, including a five-set loss to No. 19 UNC and a four-set loss to No. 11 SMU.
  • Halle Jameson leads the Rams on offense with 115 kills so far this season and an average of 3.19 kills per set. Jameson is currently working with a .190 [116-52-320] hitting percentage. The sophomore posted a season-high 19 kills in their four-set loss against UNC.
  • At the net, Kekua Richards leads the blocking efforts with 49 total blocks this season. Just behind Richards is Eve Wilson with 45 total blocks. Richards posted a season-high nine blocks in the three-set sweep of Colorado, and Wilson posted eight against Wyoming.
  • On the back row, Karsyn Fetzer leads with 130 digs and an average of 3.61 digs per set. Maria Brun and Erin Debiec are in double figures in service aces with 16 and 14, respectively.

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Players Mentioned

Brooke Bentke

#11 Brooke Bentke

OH
6' 2"
Sophomore
Caelyn Robel

#16 Caelyn Robel

OH
6' 2"
Freshman
Anna Blaine

#17 Anna Blaine

S
6' 0"
Freshman
Ashley Euston

#10 Ashley Euston

MB
6' 2"
Redshirt Freshman
Peyton McKee

#2 Peyton McKee

OH
6' 0"
Sophomore
India Bennett

#18 India Bennett

MB
6' 0"
Fifth Year
Jasmine Purakal

#12 Jasmine Purakal

L
5' 3"
Fifth Year

Players Mentioned

Brooke Bentke

#11 Brooke Bentke

6' 2"
Sophomore
OH
Caelyn Robel

#16 Caelyn Robel

6' 2"
Freshman
OH
Anna Blaine

#17 Anna Blaine

6' 0"
Freshman
S
Ashley Euston

#10 Ashley Euston

6' 2"
Redshirt Freshman
MB
Peyton McKee

#2 Peyton McKee

6' 0"
Sophomore
OH
India Bennett

#18 India Bennett

6' 0"
Fifth Year
MB
Jasmine Purakal

#12 Jasmine Purakal

5' 3"
Fifth Year
L