Thursday, October 30, 2014
 
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PORTALES, N.M. – Heading into the second to last weekend of Lone Star Conference matches, the Eastern New Mexico volleyball team is closing in on their second straight berth to the conference tournament. The Zias will meet Angelo State and Tarleton State this weekend in the final two road LSC matches this season. Friday sees the first serve at 5 p.m. MT against the TexAnns in Wisdom Volleyball Gym while the match versus the Rambelles takes place at 1 p.m. MT in the Junell Center on Saturday.
 
Records
ENMU: 12-13, 4-8 LSC
TSU: 19-5, 9-4 LSC
ASU: 17-5, 9-4 LSC
 
All-Time Series
TSU Series: ENMU leads 24-13
ENMU streak: W2
First Meeting in 2014: Sept. 27, ENMU won 3-0 in Portales
Last ENMU win at TSU: Nov. 4, 2004, 3-0
 
ASU Series: ASU leads
ENMU Streak: L13
First 2014 Meeting: Sept. 26, ASU won 3-0 in Portales
Last ENMU win at ASU: Oct. 8, 2005, 3-2
 
Scouting Eastern New Mexico
Leading Eastern with 282 kills and 3.03 k/s is sophomore Lauren Frye. Her .233 attack percentage is second the team behind senior Agatha Gibbons' .325 attack percentage which ranks third in the conference. Gibbons has 201 kills and averages 2.14 k/s while senior Lindsey Barron posts 2.29 k/s with 197 kills on the year.
 
Setting the attackers up are seniors Kennedi Catano and Karra Day with 5.34 and 4.83 a/s, respectively. At the service line, sophomore Lindsay Bost has recorded 31 aces, the most on the team, while fellow classmate Courtney Lawson is close behind her with 30.
 
Gibbons became the first Zia since 2005 to reach triple-digit blocks in a season with 101, 22 of which have been solo rejections. Senior Bree Anna Lucero has added 86 blocks while Frye has helped reject 64. Bost continues to lead the team with 318 digs and 3.49 d/s. Both freshman Andrea Aguilar and Lawson are getting 3.29 and 3.04 d/s, respectively.
 
As a team, Eastern is hitting .181 with 12.0 k/s and 11.2 a/s. They recorded 126 service aces for LSC leading 1.34 per set. The Zias average 13.7 d/s and hold a 200-169.5 advantage in blocks. Opponents are posting 11.3 k/s, 10.6 a/s and are hitting .160.
 
Scouting Tarleton State
Tarleton State goes into the weekend on a five-match winning streak and are 9-1 since being swept on the road at Eastern New Mexico and West Texas A&M. The TexAnns are currently tied for third in the LSC with Angelo State and are a game back of Texas Woman's for second place. TSU has already clinched a spot in the conference tournament and still has a slim shot of sharing the LSC regular season title.
 
Hailey Roberts has totaled a team-high 366 kills while leading the conference with 4.11 k/s. She is hitting .193 and has recorded a LSC-best 50 service aces. Both Kenya Alexander (2.26) and Kaitlyn White (2.22) are averaging over two kills a set while Alexander paces the team with a .261 attack percentage. Setting the hitters up is Emily Medlin with 6.71 a/s and Chandler Gow at 4.99 a/s.
 
Defensively, Katie Covell is getting 4.46 d/s and Roberts adds 2.89 d/s. Alexander not only leads the conference but is also first in the nation with 133 blocks. Of her total, 45 have been solo rejections. Jasmyne Brown and Kelsey Raglin have contributed 82 and 58 blocks, respectively. Both Ashley Rine (40) and Roberts (43) have at least 40 rejections this season as well.
 
TSU is hitting .183 on the year with 12.8 k/s and 12.0 a/s. They have recorded 118 service aces while hitting into 157 errors. At the net, they average 2.5 b/s and have totaled 232 blocks, both second in the LSC. Opponents are producing 10.5 k/s and 9.8 a/s with a .133 attack percentage and getting two blocks a set.
 
Scouting Angelo State
Angelo State comes into the weekend having won five straight with three being in three sets and the other two in four. Prior to hosting the Zias on Saturday, the Rambelles will welcome conference leading and 24th-ranked West Texas A&M to town Halloween night. ASU is tied for third in the LSC with Tarleton State and are a game back of Texas Woman's for second.
 
Leading the Rambelles offensively is Mallory Blauser with 303 kills and 3.99 k/s while hitting .208. Brianna Sotello is second with 2.98 k/s while Abbie Lynn is getting 2.82 k/s. Pacing the team with a .282 attack percentage is Zoey Hanrahan. First in the LSC with 11.33 a/s is Alexa Johnson.
 
Shelby Wilt comes in with the second most d/s in the conference at 5.18. Katie MacLeay is getting 3.39 d/s as well. At the net, Hanrahan has a team-high 69 blocks. Both Daeleigh Castile and Blauser have at least 40 rejections with 45 and 40, respectively. Blauser also has five of the squads 12 solo blocks.
 
ASU comes in hitting .192 but is first in the LSC with 14.3 k/s and 13.5 a/s. They also lead the conference and are second in the nation in d/s at 21.1. The Rambelles average 1.9 b/s and have 152 blocks on the year. Opposing teams are putting up 11.4 k/s and 10.7 with a .130 attack percentage. They are also getting 18.9 d/s and have totaled 179.5 rejections for 2.3 a set.
 
Live stats and video will be available for both matches with links available at the top of the article.
 
For the latest information on Zia volleyball, follow @ENMUSports on Twitter and visit the official website of ENMU athletics at GoEasternAthletics.com.