CANYON, Texas (October 5, 2024) – The "Rivalry on the Range" intensifies Saturday at 2 p.m., as Lubbock Christian University takes on No. 9 West Texas A&M in Lone Star Conference volleyball action inside WTAMU Fieldhouse, "The Box." The match marks LCU's 14th of the season and their final one on the road before a four-match homestand at the Rip Griffin Center. The Lady Chaps are seeking momentum against a top-ranked opponent to close out their extended road stretch.
 

LSC VOLLEYBALL
OPPONENT	LOCATION	DAY	TIME (CT)	WATCH	STATS
No.9 West Texas A&M	Canyon, Texas	Fri., Oct. 4	7:00 p.m.	Video	Stats

 
LOOKING AT WTAMU
- The "Rivalry on the Range" volleyball series will feature its 52nd meeting between Lubbock Christian University and West Texas A&M on Saturday. The Lady Buffs lead the series with a 36-14-1 record, having won the past three meetings and six of the last seven. LCU seeks to break a six-match losing streak in Canyon, where they hold a 5-20 record and last won on Sept. 5, 2015. Their previous matchup ended in a 3-0 victory for WTAMU on Oct. 25, 2023 (in Canyon).

- West Texas A&M enters Saturday's game with a 10-3 record overall and an unblemished 3-0 mark in Lone Star Conference play, ranking them tied atop the conference standings (one of five teams 5-0). With a huge 3-0 win in straight sets over No.14 Angelo State Friday in Canyon, the Lady Buffs are currently riding a four-match win streak. The Lady Buffs have had success on road (4-0 record away) and at home, where they are 4-1.

- The Lady Buffs are coming off a season (2023) in which they were a win away from consecutive national titles, as they were the national finalist with a 33-4 record. They entered this season as the LSC Preseason Poll favorites.

- For the first time since the 2019 season, the Lady Buffs are under the guidance of a new head coach as Brittany Harry was named the 16th leader of WT Volleyball. She previously was at Texas A&M International, where she was the 2022 LSC Coach of the Year. Harry replaces Kendra Potts, who is now at Grand Canyon.

- The West Texas A&M Lady Buffs boast strong national and conference rankings in multiple volleyball statistics, particularly excelling in blocking and hitting efficiency. Ranking 57th nationally and third in the Lone Star Conference with 2.18 blocks per set, WTAMU also leads the conference in hitting percentage at .257, placing them 22nd in the nation. Individually, Taytum Stow stands out second in the conference in blocks with 1.16 blocks per set (57^th nationally), while Angelina Oliver ranks second in hitting percentage at .420 (27^th nationally). Bryli Contreras has also made an impact defensively, ranking sixth in total digs (221).

LADY CHAP NOTES
- Lubbock Christian enters Saturday's match with a 6-7 overall record and a 2-1 mark in Lone Star Conference play, currently ranked sixth among LSC teams. They are one of seven programs with a winning record in the conference standings. While the Lady Chaps have excelled on neutral courts with a 4-3 record, they have faced challenges on the road, going 2-4. However, LCU has gained momentum, securing victories in their last two road matches.

- Saturday's match is LCU's first of the season against a nationally ranked foe. LCU went 0-1 against nationally ranked programs, with No.5 WTAMU standing as their only match last season against a top-25 program. LCU's last win over a nationally ranked program was over No.25 WTAMU (3-2) on Nov. 6, 2021 and their last road win over a top-25 squad was at No.22 West Texas A&M (3-2) on Sept. 5, 2015.

- LCU stands out in the attacks per set category, entering Saturday averaging 38.1 attacks (per set), which ranks third in the Lone Star Conference and 28th nationally. Kiana Fallaha and Lily Bickley are at the forefront, contributing significantly to this statistic. Fallaha ranks second in the conference with 11.1 attacks per set (18th nationally) and has 568 total attacks to rank 20^th nationally (second in the conference). Overall, LCU's total attacks amount to 1,945, which is third in the conference and 44th nationally (led the LSC heading into Friday).
 
- This season marks the inaugural year of the Lone Star Conference issuing a Freshman of the Week accolade in volleyball, and LCU claimed its first honor as Leddy Rae Guinn received the award Monday. Guinn shined on the back row last week, ranking third in the LSC in digs per set (6.75) and second in total digs (54). She posted 20 digs against Texas Woman's and followed up with 34 digs at Midwestern State, the highest total by a Lady Chaps player since 2019 (Maddie DeGuire produced 35 against Western New Mexico on Sept. 27, 2019) and the top LSC single-match total in matches under five sets this week. Guinn claims the first LSC weekly honor issued to LCU this season. Last season, LCU claimed a trio of weekly honors, as Kiana Fallaha (Offensive) and Kayton Genenbacher (Setter) were each recognized. Genenbacher claimed a pair of Setter of the Week honors and was the last Lady Chaps member recognized with an LSC weekly honor (Oct. 10, 2023 was the last time she and a Lady Chaps member was recognized). The weekly marks have Guinn entering the week ranking 11^th in the LSC in LSC in digs per set (3.94) and ninth in total digs (189). Her performance of 34 digs at Midwestern State is the highest digs tally in a single match by an LSC performer this season in a four-set match and the third-highest overall for a match involving an LSC program this season.

- This season marks LCU's fourth season under coach Giboney. The Lady Chaps seventh head coach in program history has jumped into his 20th year of NCAA coaching. Giboney, who has four NCAA Tournament appearances and seven conference titles on his resume, surpassed 400 coaching victories in his first season with LCU and has a career coaching mark of 438-211. The Chaps head coach entered the season as the 29th best-active head coach in win percentage (.679) and as the 27th best-active head coach in victories (432). He has the third-highest win total of head coaches with less than 20 years of head coaching experience.

- Setter Kayton Genenbacher currently sits ninth all-time in LCU's career record books for assists with 2,617. Last Friday in Denton, Texas, she became the ninth Lady Chaps member in program history to reach 2,500 assists. Genenbacher ranks 24th nationally in assists per set with an average of 10.6, which places her third in the Lone Star Conference. She has amassed a total of 539 assists this season (third in LSC and 28^th nationally).
 
-The Lady Chaps have shown potential in several key statistical categories within the Lone Star Conference and at the national level. Notably, the team's digs per set average of 16.4 ranks fifth in the conference and 69^th nationally, highlighting a solid defensive effort, led by Leddy Rae Guinn (12^th in LSC with 3.9 digs per set). On the offensive side, the team's kills per set average of 13.4 is respectable, placing sixth in the conference, with Kiana Fallaha (sixth in points per set and 85^th nationally, 3.87) and Lily Bickley (ninth in LSC, 3.65) leading the way in scoring. Payton Murray has also been on display with double-figure kill efforts in three of the prior four matches and is averaging 3.13 kills per set over the four-game span.
 
- Lubbock Christian University (LCU) has averaged 13.3 kills per set while allowing 13.7 kills per set in true road matches this season. Bryleigh Schweer leads the team with a hitting percentage of .407, averaging 2.3 kills per set, while Lily Bickley follows closely behind, posting a hitting percentage of .325 and contributing 3.04 kills per set. Bickley (12) and Leddy Rae Guinn (10) have combined for 22 of LCU's 33 aces in road matches. Additionally, Kayton Genenbacher leads LCU in assists, averaging 10.96 assists per set, and Guinn tops the team in digs with 4.17 digs per set.
 
- LCU has made notable strides in conference play. Kayton Genenbacher has been a standout, averaging 12.7 assists per set, contributing a total of 140 assists in three matches. Lily Bickley supports the offense with 40 kills, with Payton Murray (38), Kiana Fallaha (32) and Bryleigh Schweer (32) providing a balance attack (14.6 kills per set for LCU with a .283 hitting mark). Schweer leads in hitting percentage at .369 and Bickley leads in points per set (4.45). Defensively, Leddy Rae Guinn shines with an average of 5.73 digs per set.

- All remaining regular season scheduled matches can be watched via live streaming on FloSports. FloSports has recently partnered with the Lone Star Conference to offer a subscription-based service that provides live video coverage. A subscription to FloSports gives you access to all content on their platform. For more details, visit www.lcuchaps.com/live.