Maroon & Gold Weekly Wrap-Up: Bobcat Volleyball, Soccer, WBB & Football

Maroon & Gold Weekly Wrap-Up:

Bobcat Volleyball, Soccer, WBB & Football

Bobcats take down Ragin’ Cajuns to open conference play

SAN MARCOS, Texas – A testy match resulted in a 3-1 (25-23, 21-25, 25-13, 25-20) victory for the Texas State volleyball team as they topped Louisiana Friday night at Strahan Arena to extend its home winning streak to four.

“I am glad that match is over, and we got the win,” said head coach Karen Chisum. “We struggled the first two sets, but we regrouped and really started clicking in the third and fourth set. Tonight was great for our confidence as we begin this long journey through the Sun Belt Conference.”

The Bobcats (9-6, 1-0) have won six of their seven conference openers since joining the Sun Belt conference with tonight’s win, and seven of the last eight openers when counting their lone season in the Western Athletic Conference (2012). Friday night, Texas State did most of its damage with a decent offensive strike that outhit its Louisiana (4-10, 0-1) .237-.130, recording seven attacking errors in the latter two sets after committing 14 in the first two stanzas. The Bobcats’ back row played well as they totaled 97 digs with five players reaching double figures. The total number of digs is the second-most in a four-set match and fourth-highest total overall in the Sun Belt this season.

With a win, TXST extends its streak to six consecutive wins vs. La. and have an 8-0 record when playing at home vs. the Ragin’ Cajuns. The Bobcats also bring the all-time series record to 18-1.

Senior outside hitter Cheyenne Huskey turned in a season-high 21 kills on 48 swings and four errors (.354) She also had a match-high two aces, as did sophomore defensive specialist Kayla Granado, and had one block. Granado also finished with ten digs. Sophomore outside Janell Fitzgerald recorded a season-high as well, landing 15 kills with a .270 attack percentage and led the team with three blocks. Freshman outside hitter Courtney Heiser matched a season-best 13 kills to round out the Bobcat top hitters. Sophomore setter Emily DeWalt logged her fifth double-double of the season (26th in her career) as she tied her season-best 47 assists and set a new career-high 25 digs in the win. DeWalt also had three kills and two blocks in the match. Sophomore middle blocker Jillian Slaughter paced the team with three blocks in addition to her five kills, and junior libero Brooke Johnson and senior DS Rylie Fuentes did work on the back row with 19 and 17 digs, respectively, both career-highs wearing the Maroon and Gold.

Louisiana was led by junior outside hitter Hali Wisnoskie’s 12 kills and nearly had a double-double with nine digs. She also finished with a pair of blocks. Senior middle Dree’Ana Abram continued her efficient play with ten kills behind a match-high .381 hitting percentage and led the team with two aces while matching sophomore middle Tia Jade Smith for a game-high three blocks. Two Ragin’ Cajun players finished with 20 or more digs, including junior libero Hannah Ramirez (23) and sophomore outside Kelsey Bennett (22). Bennett filled the stat sheet well with nine kills, two blocks, and one ace.

Set 1
Both teams went back-and-forth throughout the set that saw ten ties and four lead changes. With the score at 8-7 in favor of Louisiana, Texas State scored three unanswered points for an 11-8 advantage and led 15-12 at the first media timeout. Out of the timeout, however, Louisiana scored five of the next seven points to tie the set at 17 and force a Bobcat timeout. Texas State then responded with a 4-2 run for a 23-19 edge, and although Louisiana put together a late run, the Bobcats overcame with a 25-23 win.

Set 2
The second stanza was just as tight, although it only featured two lead changes, both of which happened before the media timeout with Louisiana leading 15-12. The Ragin’ Cajuns built their most significant margin of the entire match to five on two separate occasions before the Bobcats trimmed the deficit 20-18 to force a timeout by the visiting club. That would be the closest the Cats would get in the set as La. escaped with a 25-21 victory to tie the match.

Set 3
Texas State flipped the switch and took a 17-9 advantage early, highlighted by a 5-1 run before the Ragin’ Cajuns called for a break. The run continued on the other side of the timeout as the Bobcats’ margin ballooned 21-11 and the home team regained the match lead with a 25-13 win.

Set 4
The Ragin’ Cajuns had a 7-5 lead before the Bobcats erupted with a 5-1 run followed by a 6-2 run after a timeout to lead 16-10. Texas State kept it rolling and brushed off a small burst by Louisiana and won the set 25-20.

The Bobcats will wrap-up the conference-opening weekend with a noon match Sept. 29 vs. ULM at Strahan Arena.

Bobcats and Trojans Play to Scoreless Draw

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The Texas State soccer team dominated the stat lines but were unable to find the back of the net as it played to a 0-0 draw Friday night at Little Rock at the Coleman Sports Complex. It is the third consecutive tie in the all-time series between the teams.

With the result, the Bobcats are now 4-4-2 overall and 0-1-1 in the Sun Belt Conference while the Trojans are 3-5-4 on the season with a 0-1-2 mark in conference play.

The teams felt each other out as the first shot of the contest came midway through the 11th minute from Mackenzie Smith. Her attempt went by the outside left post.

Hannah Solano put the first shot on goal late in the 16th minute. The sophomore’s crack at goal saw LR’s goalkeeper make a diving stop at the bottom left corner.

Nearly halfway through the 56th minute, Kaylee Davis beat a Trojan defender to a long ball. The Allen, Texas native juked out another LR player to give her an opening on goal. She sent her shot to the near post where the keeper smothered the ball to keep it scoreless.

The Bobcat defense held the Trojans without a shot until the 70th minute when Astros Luckas sent an attempt wide of the near post.

Smith had a good look from just outside the six-yard box, but the ball deflected off a defender for a corner kick.

Only 35 seconds into the first overtime, Ally Kewish unleashed a shot just inside the 18-yard box. The ball had to be pushed past the near post by the goalkeeper for a corner kick and extend the match. Kewish followed with 25 seconds left in the extra period from the far side, but the ball buzzed the wrong side of the near post.

Kamaria Williams placed her lone attempt of the match in the 102nd minute on frame that was right at the keeper.

The final two minutes of the contest saw LR put more pressure on the Texas State defense. Morgan Smocovich took a long, high arching shot in the 109th minute that saw Heather Martin leap and tip the ball over the crossbar. The Trojans kept the ball in their attacking half of the field the rest of the match as the Bobcat defenders kept them from getting another shot off the rest of the way.

TXST led in shots (12-5), shots on goal (4-1) and corner kicks (12-2) in the match. Both Davis and Smith led all players with three shots each.

Martin needed to make just one save on the night. It was her second shutout of the season to give her 17 in her career to take over second place in Bobcat history.

The weekend in the Natural State concludes on Sunday against Arkansas State at 1 p.m.

Box Score: https://txstatebobcats.com/boxscore.aspx?id=6877&path=wsoc

WBB rings in the 2019-20 season with first practice

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State women’s basketball team began the 2019-20 season with its first official practice on Friday morning.

“I was really excited for the official first day of practice,” head women’s basketball coach Zenarae Antoine said. “The team and coaching staff did a great job of bringing energy. We have talked a lot about earning opportunities, and the team has taken that mindset in every facet of our program. I look forward to the next month as we prepare for the 2019-20 season.”

The Bobcats are stocked with young, talented players to compliment the veteran core. Senior guard Brooke Holle will lead the team. She leads all Bobcat returners in 17 categories, including career points (707), rebounds (386), assists (124), steals (92), blocks (20), and 3-point field goals made (98), and is currently on pace to become the 19th player in Texas State women’s basketball history to surpass 1,000 career points. She finished with 10.5 points and a team-high 6.4 rebounds per contest as a junior.

Sophomore guard Kennedy Taylor will join Holle to give the Bobcats an excellent one-two punch in the backcourt. Taylor burst onto the scene late in conference play for the Bobcats during her first season in the Maroon and Gold. She appeared in all 31 games for TXST and averaged 5.1 points, 3.3 assists, and 1.6 rebounds in 21.2 minutes per contest. Her production increased to 7.2 points, 4.3 assists, and 2.4 rebounds in 29.0 minutes per game in starting role over the final 12 games of the season. Taylor registered nine games with five-plus assists and charted 11 games with multiple steals.

Coach Z returns six more letter winners from a team that earned a trip to New Orleans for the Sun Belt Conference Championship for the sixth straight season in 2019. Senior guard Bailey Holle provided the Bobcats with excellent leadership, court vision, and defensive prowess. She has appeared in more games (81) than any other returning Bobcat. Junior guard Avionne Alexander played in a career-high 24 games off the Bobcat bench. Her defensive ability and leadership will be leaned on throughout the upcoming season. Junior forward Jayla Johnson played in 24 with eight starts in her second season. She finished third on the Bobcats in scoring last season with 8.0 points per game.

Sophomore guard Ja’Kayla Bowie appeared in 28 games with 11 starts for the Cats and averaged 3.8 points and 2.8 rebounds per contest. Sophomore forward Da’Nasia Hood creates great spacing for the TXST offense as the best long-range shooting forward. Finally, sophomore center Jaeda Reed will look to build off a season in which she appeared in 21 games and averaged 2.0 points and 1.1 rebounds a night.

Texas State welcomes five new Bobcats this season. The 2019 recruiting class saw the Bobcats add three freshmen, a four-year transfer, and a junior college transfer. Junior forward Lillie Moore helped lead Kansas City Kansas Community College to the 2019 NJCAA DII National Basketball national championship. Sophomore forward Lauryn Thompson joined the Bobcats in the offseason by way of Virginia Commonwealth (VCU). Due to NCAA transfer rules, Thompson will sit out the 2019-20 season. The freshman class features forward Chelsea Johnson, guard Keslyn King, and guard Jessica Paz y Puente.

The Bobcats open the season at 5:30 p.m. on Nov. 5 against Texas Lutheran at Strahan Arena.

Two Matches in the Natural State

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State soccer team (4-4-1, 0-1-0 Sun Belt) travels to the state of Arkansas for two roads Sun Belt Conference matches this weekend. A rematch of the Sun Belt Tournament finals takes place Friday at 7 p.m. against Little Rock (3-5-3, 0-1-1 Sun Belt) at the Coleman Sports Complex. The Bobcats then take on Arkansas State (5-3-0, 1-0-0 Sun Belt) at the A-State Soccer Complex on Sunday with kickoff scheduled for 1 p.m.

Live stats and video streams will be available for both contests.

Last Weekend
The Bobcats fell in a hard-fought 1-0 double-overtime match to South Alabama to being conference play last Thursday. Heather Martin matched her season-high with six saves while Kaylee Davis led all players with four shots.

Senior CLASS Award
The 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award were released on Monday with both Davis and Martin being on the list. They are the first players in program history to be named candidates for the award. The duo is part of four players from a Lone Star State program on the list.

An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School^®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.

Scouting Little Rock
The Trojans opened conference play with a 1-0 loss at Georgia State before playing to a scoreless draw at Georgia Southern. LR’s three wins this year have been at home against Grambling State, Mississippi Valley State, and Southeastern Louisiana while two non-conference draws came against Central Arkansas and UT Martin. When playing at home, the Trojans are 3-1-1 with the lone loss coming against Missouri State.

Julia Edholm leads the Trojans with three goals and yellow cards. The only other player to score multiple times this season is Mari Young with two tallies. Morgan Smocovich comes in tied for the Sun Belt lead with five assists.

In goal, Julia Curatolo has started the last ten matches. She enters having allowed 12 goals for a 1.15 GAA and is sporting a .745 save percentage behind 35 stops. Sara Johannsdottir started the season opener at Memphis but was lifted at halftime after allowing six goals. Her only other appearance was the final 64:27 minutes off the bench against Mississippi Valley State in which she made one save. For the season, Johannsdottir sports a 4.93 GAA and .455 save percentage with five saves.

All-Time vs. Trojans
Texas State leads the all-time series 5-0-2 over Little Rock. Last season, the teams twice played to draws. The regular-season meeting in San Marcos ended 1-1 with the lone goal coming from Davis. The teams contested a scoreless match in the finals of the Sun Belt Tournament that saw the Trojans take the title 6-5 on penalty kicks.

The previous four victories for TXST have all been by one goal with the latest being a 3-2 double-overtime contest on Oct. 15, 2017, in Little Rock. Netting the match-winner that day was Alyssa Phelan following a cross from Davis after a throw-in from Jamie Brown. The Bobcats are 2-0 all-time playing in the Natural State’s capital.

Scouting Arkansas State
The Red Wolves began conference play with a 3-1 win at ULM last Friday in their lone match of the week. They are 3-0 at home this season with victories over Central Arkansas, Jackson State, and Southeast Missouri State. Before facing the Bobcats, ASU will host Louisiana Friday afternoon.

Sarah Sodoma leads the team with six goals, five assists, 17 points, 29 shots, and 24 shots on goal. Netting four goals, half of which came against the Warhawks, is Sophia Restrepo and she was named this week’s Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week. Finding the back of the net twice has been Hailey Furio.

Credited with three assists is Lindsey Brochu. Both Abigail Glockzin and Furio have assisted on two scores apiece. The only other Red Wolf with double-digit shots this season is Maggie Ertl with 11.

Megan McClure has started seven matches between the posts. She enters the weekend with a 1.43 GAA having allowed ten goals while sporting a .722 save percentage with 26 saves. Noel Miller has made one start this season, surrendering one goal and making two stops against Jackson State.

All-Time vs. Red Wolves
Texas State holds a 5-2-0 series advantage over Arkansas State. The Bobcats won the last two meetings including a 2-1 match last season at home. Netting both goals that day was Davis with one in each half.

When playing in Jonesboro, the Bobcats are 2-1-0 all-time. The last time TXST played there was Sept. 24, 2017. Kassi Hormuth headed in a corner kick from Kira Zapalac in the 77th minute for the lone goal of the 1-0 victory.

The last win for the Red Wolves came on Oct. 9, 2016, in San Marcos by a 1-0 score.

Goals2Cure: https://pledgeit.org/goals2cure2019

Live Stats (LR): http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=265471

Video (LR): https://lrtrojans.com/watch/?Live=335&type=Live

Live Stats (ASU): http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=271541&vislive=txst

Video (ASU): https://www.facebook.com/pg/AStateSoccer/videos/

TXST Match Notes: https://txstatebobcats.com/documents/2019/9/25/2019_Soccer_Match_Notes_Week_6.pdf

Bobcats sweep Sam Houston State, 2019 Creeds & Crests Classic

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State volleyball team was crowned the 2019 Creeds & Crests Classic champions after handling Sam Houston State in straight sets (25-22, 25-19, 25-17) Saturday afternoon at Strahan Arena. The Bobcats (8-5) swept the tournament field (3-0) and extended its win streak to five matches.

“I am pleased with our play this weekend and glad to be here at Strahan Arena. Our crowds have been great, and we are lucky to be opening conference play next weekend at home,” said head coach Karen Chisum. “On the court, we are playing very well offensively and doing good things defensively as well. Some would say we got off to a rocky start, but I scheduled tough at the beginning, and we still have a big match with No. 5 Baylor coming up. But right now, having a five-match winning streak boosts the team’s confidence as we enter the next phase of the season.”

The Bobcats won the tournament title for the second consecutive year led by tournament MVP senior outside hitter Cheyenne Huskey who totaled 3.20 kills per set and eight aces in the tournament. Joining her on the Creeds & Crests All-Tournament Team was middle blocker Tyeranee Scott and sophomore setter Emily DeWalt. Scott turned in 3.00 kills per set and led the team with 13 total blocks, while DeWalt averaged 11.4 assists and 2.00 digs per set, while also producing eight kills, five aces, and four blocks.

In the match vs. Sam Houston State (4-8), the Bobcats hit .291 and totaled 45 kills, 43 assists, 42 digs, nine blocks, and four aces. Scott went off for a career-high 15 kills on 24 swings with only three errors (.500). Scott also matched a career-best seven blocks (two solos) set earlier this season. Huskey followed with nine kills and paced the team with two aces while also adding three digs and two blocks. DeWalt logged 42 assists, six digs, two kills, an ace, and a block, and junior libero Brooke Johnson had a team-high 12 digs.

Freshman outside hitter Samantha Rodgers led the Bearkats with ten kills followed by junior outside Ashley Lewis who had eight kills and a team-high three blocks. Senior libero Addison Miller had a match-high 15 digs, and senior defensive specialist Ashleigh Traylor tied with Huskey for a match-high two aces. SHSU hit .124 on the day with 32 kills and 20 errors on 97 swings and totaled 39 digs, 29 assists, four blocks, and three aces.

Set 1
The Bobcats opened the set with a 12-8 advantage led by Scott’s five kills. After the first Bearkat timeout, both teams exchanged runs, and the visiting team trimmed the lead down to one at 23-22, but the Bobcats scored the final two points with a kill from freshman outside hitter Lauren Teske and a ball-handling error by SHSU. Scott led the team with nine kills on ten errorless swings in the frame.

Set 2
Texas State went wire-to-wire to win the second set. They first jumped out to an early 6-1 lead; however, Sam Houston State climbed back into the game with a 15-11 spurt, bringing the score to 17-16.  The Maroon and Gold responded with a 5-0 run and ultimately closed the set with a 9-4 margin for the 25-19 victory.

Set 3
The Bearkats scored the first three points of the stanza, but the Bobcats rattled off seven consecutive points and took a 13-6 lead before SHSU finally called for a timeout. Although the Bearkats found some offense in the set, the hill was too high to climb, and the Bobcats took the set 25-17.

Texas State will have a quick turnaround as they travel north of I-35 to challenge No. 5 Baylor at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 24 at the Ferrell Center. The Bobcats will return home Sept. 27 to open the Sun Belt Conference schedule with a 6:30 p.m. match vs. Louisiana.

Creeds & Crests Classic All-Tournament Team
MVP – Cheyenne Huskey, Sr., OH, Texas State
Tyeranee Scott, Jr., MB, Texas State
Emily DeWalt, So., S, Texas State
Elise Smith, So., OH/MB, Sam Houston State
Breanne Chausse, So., OH/RS, Sam Houston State
Brianna McCulloch, Sr., OH, UTSA
Jaimeson Lee, Sr., S, George Washington

Creeds & Crests Classic Team Records
Texas State                   3-0
Sam Houston State        1-2
UTSA                            1-2
George Washington       1-2

Creeds & Crests Classic Tournament Results
Texas State def. UTSA, 3-1
George Washington def. Sam Houston State, 3-2
Sam Houston State def. UTSA, 3-2
Texas State def. George Washington, 3-0
UTSA def. George Washington, 3-0
Texas State def. Sam Houston State, 3-0

Texas State prevails, 37-34, in triple overtime over Georgia State

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State football team (1-3, 1-0 Sun Belt) earned a hard-fought 37-34 victory in triple overtime over the Georgia State Panthers (2-2, 0-1 Sun Belt) on Saturday night at Bobcat Stadium.

The victory marked the first in the Jake Spavital era and was the first conference home victory since defeating ULM by a score of 16-3 on Nov. 19, 2015.

BOX SCORE
• Sophomore running back Caleb Twyford carried the load offensively for the Bobcats with 137 yards rushing on 27 carries. He became the first Bobcat tailback since Anthony D. Taylor gained 102 yards against ULM on Oct. 7, 2017, to amass 100 yards on the ground.
• The Bobcats totaled 205 yards rushing on 40 carries. Taylor tallied 54 yards on 15 carries and a pair of touchdowns in the victory.
• Senior linebacker Bryan London II stuffed the box score with a career-best 22 tackles (10 solo stops), one sack and one tackle for loss. London joined Bobcat great, and current New York Giant linebacker, David Mayo as the only Bobcats to secure 20-plus tackles in a single game. Mayo compiled two such games in his storied career. London tied Mayo for the program record in a single game.
• Georgia State registered 42 rushing attempts for 204 yards. Sophomore running back Destin Coates led the charge with 18 carries for 93 yards and one score.

KEY MOMENTS
• Georgia State scored the first touchdown of the game on a 10-play, 75-yard drive. Senior quarterback Dan Ellington picked up a critical conversion with a 27-yard pitch-and-catch on a 3rd and 15 to sustain the drive. Ellington delivered a 17-yard touchdown strike two plays later to put GSU up 7-3 with 8:30 remaining in the first quarter.
• Sophomore wide receiver Javen Banks gave the Bobcats the 10-7 lead with 2:55 left in the first quarter after diving on a fumbled punt return in the endzone from the Panthers. The special team’s touchdown scored in the first quarter was the first for the Bobcats since Brandon Smith took a kickoff 95 yards to the house against Louisiana on Oct. 10, 2015.
• Ellington tossed his second scoring pass of the game with 9:09 to play in the second quarter. He found junior tight end Aubry Payne wide open in the flat for the five-yard score. The score remained 14-10 in favor of the road team until Taylor punched in his first of two rushing scores with 3:43 to play in the half.
• The second score from Taylor put the Bobcats up 27-24 with 4:56 to play in the game. He scampered off the right side of the offensive line and into the endzone from 20 yards out.
• GSU chipped in a 20-yard field goal as time expired to send the game into overtime.
• The Panthers struck first in OT on a 14-yard pass from Ellington to freshman wideout Sam Pinkney. Junior quarterback Gresch Jensen answered the score with a one-yard touchdown on the QB-keeper.
• Both teams missed field goal attempts in the second overtime period before Georgia State missed a second FG attempt in the third OT. Graduate transfer Joshua Rowland knocked in the winning 35-yard field goal at the end of the third overtime.

NOTABLES
• London became the sixth player in Bobcat football history to record 200-plus career solo tackles. He ranks fifth in program history with 208 solo stops during his prolific career. He is tied for fourth in school history with 388 total tackles.
• Senior wide receiver Hutch White hauled in four receptions to move into the top spot in the Sun Belt Conference standings with 27 catches this season.
• Texas State became the first home team to win in the series since Georgia State took the 41-21 on Oct. 8, 2016. The Bobcats now lead the series 4-3 over the Panthers.
• The 137 rushing yards from Twyford marked the most rushing yards for a Bobcat running back since Tyler Siudzinski recorded 170 yards on the ground at Idaho on Nov. 28, 2015.
• The Texas State defense forced 18 turnovers (1.5 per game) during the 2018 season. This season, the Cats defense has earned nine takeaways (2.3 per game) through four contests.
• Senior offensive lineman made his 39th consecutive start for the Bobcats. He has started all but one contest in his collegiate career. Freshman cornerback Khambrail Winters recorded his first career start.

QUOTES FROM THE SIDELINE
~ “I could not be prouder of this team and how they just battled,” coach Spavital said. “The message all week was about who would want it more. This was the most complementary football game we have played. That is what we have to do to have success.”

UP NEXT
– Texas State will resume an old rivalry with former Southland Conference foe Nicholls at Bobcat Stadium. Kick is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Sept. 28. The game will be available for stream via ESPN3.

Bobcats fall at No. 2 Baylor

WACO, Texas – The Texas State volleyball team’s non-conference schedule ended with a setback vs. No. 2 Baylor in straight sets (19-25, 16-25,11-25). The loss ends the Bobcats five-match winning streak and brings the club to an 8-6 record entering Sun Belt Conference action.

Baylor (10-0) extended its head-to-head winning streak to six after hitting .377 and held the Bobcats to a season-low -.013 hitting percentage. BU also led in blocks (7-4), and both teams recorded two aces. The nationally-ranked Lady Bears have won 13 consecutive sets and have swept four straight opponents, including Tuesday night’s victory.

Senior outside hitter Cheyenne Huskey and freshman outside hitter Caitlan Buettner led the Bobcats with five kills and Huskey had a team-high four digs. Sophomore setter Emily DeWalt had 18 assists and an ace, and sophomore outside Janell Fitzgerald tied for a match-high four blocks to go along with three kills. Junior middle blocker Tyeranee Scott also had three kills. Texas State had its lowest output of the season tallying 19 total kills.

BU’s senior middle Shelly Stafford had a match-high 11 kills on a .471 hitting percentage and eight digs. She also had three blocks and one ace in the match. Stafford was followed by freshman middle blocker Kara McGhee who hit .900 with nine kills on ten errorless swings and led the team with four blocks. Junior setter Hannah Lockin paced the team with 32 assists and registered six digs and two kills in the match.

Set 1
Texas State competed hard to open the frame and led 8-6 early; however, Baylor went on a 5-1 run to take an 11-9 advantage which led to a Bobcat timeout. The Cats hung tough throughout the set, but Baylor scored five of the final six points to win the opening set 25-19.

Set 2
The Bobcats scored the first three points and led 4-1 before the Lady Bears’ 5-0 burst sparked a 13-5 scoring run to take a 14-9 lead. The run continued on the other side of the timeout as the lead grew as large as ten and Baylor ultimately won the stanza 25-16.

Set 3
For the second consecutive set, the Bobcats struck first and led 3-1 before the Lady Bears scored nine of the next 11 points to take a 10-5 lead, forcing a Bobcat timeout. The Lady Bears would continue their work after the break and ended the match with a 25-11 set three victory.

With the non-conference schedule now complete, the Bobcats gear up for their Sun Belt Conference home-opening weekend where they will welcome Louisiana at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 27, and ULM at noon Sept. 29 at Strahan Arena.

Scott honored with Sun Belt weekly accolade

NEW ORLEANS – Junior middle blocker Tyeranee Scott earned the first Sun Belt Conference weekly award for the Texas State volleyball team this season announced by the league office Monday afternoon.

Scott, a Houston native, was named the Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week after leading the Bobcats with 13 total blocks. She capped off the tournament with a career-high 15 kills and seven blocks in the sweep vs. Sam Houston State to conclude the tournament and finished second on the team with 3.00 kills per set. The Maroon and Gold claimed the Creeds & Crests Classic for the second consecutive year.

The accolade is the first defensive plaudit of Scott’s career and her third overall Sun Belt honor. She was twice named the league’s freshman of the week in 2017.

Texas State is currently traveling north I-35 to challenge No. 2 Baylor at 6 p.m. Sept. 24 at the Ferrell Center.

Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week
Tyeranee Scott, Jr., MB, Texas State

Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week
Anett Nemeth, So., OH, Coastal Carolina

Sun Belt Setter of the Week
Amara Anderson, So., S, Troy

Sun Belt Freshman of the Week
Julia Brooks, Fr., MH, Troy

Davis and Martin Named Senior CLASS Award Candidates

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – Texas State soccer players Kaylee Davis and Heather Martin were one of 30 student-athletes named as candidates for the 2019 Senior CLASS Award on Monday. They are the first players in program history to be selected for the list.

Davis leads the team this season with three goals, 31 shots and ten shots on goal. She is coming off an 18-goal campaign, tying the program season record, which also saw her be named the Sun Belt Conference’s Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year.

The Allen, Texas native became the first Bobcat named to the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List at the beginning of August. She also is the first player in program history to be honored as a United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-America selection, making the third team last season.

Martin is currently leading the Sun Belt with a .839 save percentage and is second with a 0.74 goals-against average. Last season saw her set TXST season records for GAA (0.45), save percentage (.919) and shutouts (9) as she was named the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year.

The Midlothian, Texas native became the third player in Bobcat soccer history to be named a CoSIDA Academic All-American, being selected to the second team last year. She also received United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-West Second Team accolades in 2018.

To be eligible for the award, student-athletes must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character, and competition.

An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School^®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.

Each of the 60 candidates (30 men & 30 women), has displayed a strong work ethic in the classroom and on the pitch. Outside of academics and athletics, all candidates also have been consistently involved in community service on their campus or in their communities.

Each of the two candidate classes will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those ten names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches, and fans, who will select one male candidate and one female candidate who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character, and competition.

The Senior CLASS Award winners will be announced during the 2019 NCAA Men’s and Women’s College Cup^® championships in December.

For more information on all the candidates, visit seniorCLASSaward.com.