PORTALES, N.M. – Winners of four of its last five matches, Texas A&M University-Kingsville (7-4, 0-0 LSC) looks to keep the momentum going by beginning Lone Star Conference play with matches on Friday at Eastern New Mexico University (2-7, 0-1 LSC) and then Saturday against Western New Mexico University (1-8, 1-0 LSC). Both matches will be played at 7 p.m. central time zone on their respective days. 
 
The Javelinas had a strong non-conference schedule where they hit .206, ranking fourth in the LSC. They hold opponents to the third lowest attack percentage in the league (.143) and lead the way with 56 service aces and 18.65 digs per set.  
 
Texas A&M-Kingsville have two players inside the top ten of the LSC in hitting percentage. Lexi Wick is second with a .387 clip followed by Haley Hutchinson's .316 percentage. They both account for 103 and 69 kills, respectively. The duo also causes havoc defensively as they both average 0.88 blocks per set in the middle. Krystal Faison has logged 105 total kills and 14 aces to lead the team in both categories, while Madison Brabham has totaled 82 kills. Casey Klobedans 9.32 assists per set are the fifth most in the conference and freshman Jasmine Jacinto's 181 digs lead the league.   
 
The Greyhounds enter the weekend licking their wounds due to their first conference loss which came at the hands of Western New Mexico. Opponents have outhit them this season .232-.129 as they average 11.03 kills per set and 1.42 blocks per set – currently the lowest in the league. Sarah Tuioti-Mariner leads the team with 2.75 kills per set and a total of 99 kills. Brooklyn Biel matches Tuioti-Mariner's .195 hitting percentage although she averages 2.56 kills per set with 92 total kills. Biel leads the team defensively, however, with 22 blocks. 
 
Although the Greyhounds lead the all-time series 32-23 and have a 17-8 record when playing at home, the Javelinas have won nine of the last ten matches. In their last meeting in 2016, ENM topped TAMUK for the first time since 2011.    
 
The Mustangs are coming off of their first win of the season after sweeping ENMU at home a couple of days ago. Overall, the team hits just .141 as a unit and averages 11.6 kills per set leading only the Greyhounds in the conference. WNM is led by Kalie Lyle's big arm that ranks third in the league with 3.83 kills per set. Alanna Watt follows with 2.50 kills per set and ties setter Cristal Carrizoza with four service aces. Hannah Tishlarich anchors the defense with 0.89 blocks per set. 
 
With Western New Mexico joining the LSC last year, the two clubs have not seen much of each other in the past. With the all-time record knotted at two, Kingsville looks to extend its match win streak to three after sweeping the 2016 season series. 
 
Live stats and a live stream will be made available for both matches this weekend and are accessible at javelinaathletics.com.  
 
Come and join us on September 23 for our special brunch honoring Fred Nuesch's 50 years with Javelina Nation during Hall of Fame Weekend. The event will be held at 11 a.m. in the Grand Ballrooms at Memorial Student Union Building at Texas A&M University-Kingsville. Tickets and tables are still available and all proceeds will benefit the Joan & Fred Nuesch Endowment at TAMUK. For more information on ticket and/or tables, please contact Dennis Hawkins via email (dennis.hawkins@tamuk.edu) or phone (361-593-4787) by September 18.